Page 5024 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 26 October 2011
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type of service should be offered permanently and to see what other issues arise which need to be addressed. So far, we have had just over a thousand bulky waste collections made from ACT households. This has been over the quieter months of winter and, as we head into spring and summer and people are more active in their gardens or clearing out their garages and sheds, we expect to see an increase in demand in the coming months.
The details of what can be collected and how to book are available online and people can get information also from Canberra Connect. This trial is a great example of what the government is trying to do to improve services to Canberrans while ensuring there is a focus on those who are disadvantaged. In this case the bulk waste disposal service is available to all residents who need special help and support by way of a free collection. So particularly pensioners and the elderly are benefiting greatly from this service, and the government is delighted that they are taking advantage of it.
MS PORTER: Supplementary.
MR SPEAKER: Yes, Ms Porter.
MS PORTER: Minister, you mentioned the elderly. I wonder what special services the government has put in place for seniors and others in the community who find it especially difficult to manage bulky waste.
MR CORBELL: As I alluded to in my previous answer, the trial offers a free collection of bulky waste to any resident who currently holds a Centrelink pensioner concession card, an ACTION gold concession card or a Department of Veterans Affairs gold card. This is a very important service for people in those circumstances. Pensioners, often living alone—commonly they no longer have a car, perhaps because they are unable to drive or cannot afford a car—often have smaller homes and they struggle with having all of the space they need to deal with larger items for which they no longer have a use. They cannot simply put them away somewhere in the garage.
These are the people the government is seeking primarily to assist through a free collection service and access to further collections at a competitive rate. The free service to eligible residents can include one mattress as part of the two cubic metres to be collected. This is a common item that older residents often need to dispose of and that are difficult to dispose of because of their size and bulk.
The bulky waste collection is serving these residents very well and I am receiving increasing numbers of correspondence from older Canberrans, pensioners and others, saying what a terrific service this is and also commending the work of Tiny’s Green Shed and Tiny himself for the very effective customer service he is providing on behalf of the government in assisting pensioners with the removal of these types of waste items.
MS LE COUTEUR: A supplementary.
MR SPEAKER: Yes, Ms Le Couteur.
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