At the time of the agreement’s creation, the state government’s Metropolitan Waste and Resource Recovery Group said new facilities would attract multimillion-dollar investments and create up to 400 jobs under construction and 100 permanent jobs.
However, eight councils have either flatly rejected the deal or put a decision on hold, putting the project in jeopardy.
Glen Eira Mayor Jim Magee has been advised to withdraw from the waste agreement. Credit:Wayne Taylor
Boroondara, Glen Eira, Manningham and Monash Councils have all rejected the agreement.
Aging understands that Maroondah and Stonnington have also withdrawn, but the councils did not respond to a request for comment.
Frankston City Council has delayed its decision. Last week, the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council expressed concern over the deal. It voted against committing to it and postponing any further decision for at least three months.
Port Phillip Council has also rejected the deal, but it was never part of the procurement process.
The councils of Bayside, Cardinia, Casey, Kingston, Knox, Whitehorse and Yarra Range are all members of the agreement.
Port Phillip Council has also rejected the deal, but it was never part of the procurement process.
Mick Cummins, chairman of the South East Metropolitan Advanced Waste Processing, said procurement was based on quantities of household waste rather than the number of participating councils.
“This process is confidential because of honesty and commercial trust,” he said. “This is a complex procurement in several phases, and we expected that some councils would not go through with allocating the tender.”
A spokesman for the government’s Metropolitan Waste and Resource Recovery Group said councils in the southeastern part of Melbourne had been exploring alternatives to landfill since 2017.
The Greens have previously tried to introduce a ban on waste incineration, but it was rejected by the state government.
Victorian Green deputy Ellen Sandell welcomed the fact that a number of councils had withdrawn from the deal, saying the “terrible proposals” would lock them in burning waste for decades to come.
“Waste incinerators generate thousands of tons of hazardous waste annually, something that no community should accept in their backyard.”
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Sir. Cummins said advanced waste treatment facilities were used safely and reliably worldwide.
“Modern, best-practice facilities have strong safety performance and are designed to meet strict emission standards,” he said.
State Environment Minister Lily D’Ambrosio said the government was working with the councils to ensure they had the resources to deliver waste and recycling reforms.
“We have invested more than $ 127 million to support the rollout of the Council [of] “Victoria’s system with four bins, including the purchase of new bins, the improvement of delivery facilities, the provision of training campaigns and the assurance that they have the infrastructure in place to roll out our waste reforms,” she said.
“We are tackling the challenges facing the recycling industry – our unprecedented investment is in minimizing the amount of waste we produce and ensuring that we recycle as many items as possible.”
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