Lake Macquarie residents may have to follow Newcastle ratepayers with the cancellation of suburb-wide bulky waste collections.
Essentially, under the new service a households entitlement to two bulky waste collections per year will stay the same but you can book in to have it collected at a time that better suits you.
If the new system is adopted by Council, households will choose either two kerbside collections, two drop-off vouchers to Awaba Waste Management Facility or a combination of both.
Manager Waste Services Paul Collins emphasised the switch was not a reduction in service.
“A bookable service means people have more flexibility to get their bulk waste collected when it’s most convenient to them,” he said.
“That might be when they’re moving house, when they’re doing spring cleaning or when their bulky goods no longer work and are beyond repair.”
“Moving to a bookable service will create tidier streets and neighbourhoods, because it means bulky waste won’t fill the verge of entire suburbs at the same time,” Mr Collins said.
“The waste also won’t stay out on the kerb as long, so there will be less litter after wind and rain.”
Lake Mac produces the sixth-highest amount of bulky waste per household compared to the 42 other local government areas in NSW offering bulky waste services.
“The amount of bulky waste we collect in Lake Mac has increased by 69 per cent in the past 10 years. We’re now collecting over 11,000 tonnes of bulky waste a year. That’s clearly not sustainable over the long term” Mr Collins said.
Illegal dumping on kerbside bulky waste piles has also been a growing problem for Lake Mac.
“Other councils who have made similar transitions tell us that the incidences of illegal dumping generally decrease with the shift to a bookable service,” Mr Collins said.
Council will continue recycling e-waste, bundled green waste, mattresses and metals from bulky waste collected, and returns from metal recycling will continue to offset the cost of the service for ratepayers.
It is proposed that bookings for the new service will open next February, with the service starting in March 2024 – the move will be considered at the March 27 Council meeting.