Wollongong dumped more than 80,000 tonnes of domestic and commercial waste into our Whytes Gully tip in the 2022-2023 financial year. That’s the equivalent of 445 blue whales going to landfill.
When waste ends up in landfills, it not only takes up valuable space but emits toxic emissions that accelerate climate change, highlighting the urgent need for more sustainable waste management practices.
Wollongong dumped more than 80,000 tonnes of domestic and commercial waste into our Whytes Gully tip in the 2022-2023 financial year - that’s the equivalent of 445 blue whales going to landfill.
Wollongong City Council has budgeted $46.6 million for construction costs relating to waste management over the next four years. In 2024-2025, Council will pay the NSW Environmental Protection Agency a levy of $170.10 per tonne for waste it places in Whytes Gully.
If Wollongong produces about 80,000 tonnes again this financial year, then the NSW Waste Levy alone will cost Council $13.6 million.
There are major employment opportunities in the transition to a circular economy. For every 10,000 tonnes of waste recycled, 9.2 jobs are created. Circular economy principles promote localised resource capture, repair and re-manufacture which can create jobs and also enhance supply chain security.
Greens candidate for Ward 3 Dr Deidre Stuart said, “Whyte’s Gully landfill has a finite capacity. Constructing new waste cells, operating the landfill, and setting aside money for its eventual rehabilitation, are major expenses for every household in Wollongong.
“Imagine if we halved our landfill waste, we would save our rate-payers more than $6 million in EPA Waste Levy payments alone,” Dr Stuart said.
Council’s draft waste and resource recovery strategy states four worthy goals for Wollongong:
> Reduce Waste to Landfill
> Transition to a Circular Economy
> Reduce Waste Related Emissions
> Improve our Waste Management.
It says that all of these goals will require education and engagement of residents to make them happen.
“As a committed Greens candidate I strongly support these goals, and am committed to helping achieve them and more, to support the move to a circular economy.
“If elected, I will look to amend Council’s Sustainable Procurement Policy that would require Council to preference reused/repaired/recycled products and materials to help drive a circular economy, across all council operations.
Dr Stuart said she would push council, if elected, to set five-year and 10-year targets against each of the goals and make Wollongong’s waste performance and related costs more visible to residents online.
“There is a concerning lack of accessible public data from the past decade about Wollongong Council’s ‘waste’ performance and the costs associated with waste disposal. We should be accountable to the community with clear targets for the reduction of landfilled waste and cost savings backed up by a regularly updated website where residents can track progress.
“There is expertise and appetite in our community we should be harnessing for positive change. Council should be collaborating with community groups like Circular Plastics Illawarra and other recyclers and community organisations to develop a plan and timetable for managing soft plastics,” said Dr Stuart.
Greens candidate for Lord Mayor and Ward 1, Jess Whittaker said: “The Wollongong Greens team isn’t afraid to think outside the box and be a leader of this space in NSW. We’d love to see recycled soft plastics which are currently causing a problem across our city repurposed as asphalt additives to improve the performance and durability of our roads.”
Ms Whittaker proposes that Council establishes or supports a tool or equipment library so that residents can borrow items they might use only irregularly.
“This might include things like blowers, pressure hoses, electric drills, sewing machines, crutches, wheelchairs, party gear, and camping gear. These items are expensive to purchase but get used infrequently and too often end up in landfill when they could be taken home by someone who needs them. We’ve seen these types of libraries benefit communities all around Australia, so why not here in Wollongong?” said Ms Whittaker.
Dr Amanda Cohn MP, Greens NSW spokesperson for Waste & Local Government said:
“In a part of the world as beautiful as Wollongong, waste should not exist and that’s what the local Greens are fighting for. A well designed circular economy ensures that everything has a value to the local community.
“The Greens in the NSW Parliament are pushing the Minns Labor government to invest in a circular economy policy that will support communities like Wollongong to transform waste into valuable resources, create new jobs and reduce environmental impact. By embracing this approach, we can ensure that nothing goes to waste, and everything contributes to the local community.
“Too much unnecessary waste is polluting our oceans and ending up in landfill while community members are missing out on jobs. I’m proud to see the Greens down in Wollongong making big strides to change that,” said Dr Cohn.
BACKGROUND
New data has confirmed the dire impact that climate change will have on Wollongong if carbon emissions continue to increase.
- the Illawarra-Shoalhaven region will experience an average temperature increase of 1.7 degrees Celsius by 2050, and an increase of 3.3 degrees by 2090, under a high emissions scenario,
- the average temperature increase would be 1 degree by 2050 and 1.1 by 2090 under a low emissions scenario,
- the number of severe fire weather days in the region would rise by 0.6 days by 2050 and triple to 1.9 per year under the high emissions scenario by 2090,
- under the lower-emissions scenario, the increase of severe fire weather days would be just 0.3 by 2050 and 0.4 by 2090.
Picture: Deidre Stuart, Dr Amanda Cohn, Jamie Dixon, Jess Whittaker and Kit Docker.