Page 1149 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 28 March 2017
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community as people start to receive their new green bins and residents will be advised of their individual collection days in the near future.
The suburbs of Weston Creek and Kambah were chosen for the pilot to give the ACT government a good sample size of residents in an established region of Canberra. They are mature areas of the city with established gardens and are broadly representative of the housing profile across the territory.
The green bins pilot will determine a number of features of a future rollout across the whole city, including how many waste trucks will be required for a city-wide rollout, the impact that a city-wide rollout will have on existing waste facilities and the required frequency of bin collections.
MS CODY: Can the minister update the Assembly on the proposed rollout schedule for the city-wide provision of green bins?
MS FITZHARRIS: I thank Ms Cody for the supplementary question. I am very happy to update the Assembly on the proposed rollout schedule for the city-wide provision of green bins. As members would recall, in the lead-up to last year’s election, Labor committed to rolling out optional green bins for garden waste to every suburb in the ACT by 2020. This re-elected Barr Labor government is now getting on with delivering this important election commitment.
Two weeks ago I was joined by Mr Steel for the delivery of the first green bin to a resident of Weston Creek as part of the initial pilot. I am sure he would agree that there was very strong community support for the rollout of these green bins. The government is making sure that we get the rollout of green bins right by conducting a phased rollout, similar to the recycling bin rollout. A phased rollout is the most efficient and effective way to deliver this major new recycling program, as it will inform the government of the level of infrastructure required for a successful city-wide rollout.
For residents in the pilot zones, it is not too late to get a green bin. Anyone living in Weston Creek or Kambah who has not yet done so can still register for a green bin, so we expect the number of bins on kerbsides to increase as the program continues. Madam Speaker, you will be pleased to know that the next stage of the rollout will be in your electorate, in Tuggeranong suburbs, following the pilot that will conclude early next year.
MR WALL: Minister, how many local trash pack businesses are now likely to be unviable as a result of your government’s green bin policy?
MS FITZHARRIS: I certainly know that I had meetings with a number of existing trash pack operators and indicated to them that they should take note of the expression of interest initiative which was underway from about July last year to the end of last year when formal tenders went out. I certainly know that there was an impact on some of those operators. They had opportunities to both input into the rollout as well as to put in a tender. I understand that many of them are looking at their options and many of them also continue to have customers right across the ACT.
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