Rockhampton Regional Council positive on recycling

Published on 19 April 2018

Rockhampton Regional Council has welcomed a statement from the Queensland Government that the issue of recycling will be discussed next week at a meeting of Environment Ministers.

Chair of Council’s Waste Committee, Councillor Neil Fisher, said while there were no plans for the Rockhampton Region to lose its kerbside recycling service, there was no doubt that eventually challenges would need to be overcome in order for it to stay.

“This is not just a Rockhampton issue or a Queensland issue – it is something that is affecting Councils and their communities across the entire country, so this meeting is timely,” Cr Fisher said.

“Rockhampton has been fortunate in that our recyclables have domestic markets rather than China, so the impact of their National Sword Policy hasn’t been felt here as it has elsewhere.

“There is no doubt though it will have effects in the industry and we are working with stakeholders to address those challenges, including high costs from high contamination levels.

“Our contamination levels for our 6,000 tonnes of collected recycling each year are about 21%. That’s more than 1,200 tonnes going back into landfill.

“While this is far less than Councils like Ipswich, which reported more than 50%, we can and have to do better.

“While Council can do its part, the community has a vital role to play and there has never been a more important time than now to make sure you are recycling properly.

“The lower our contamination rate, the more viable recycling is. It is up to our community to make sure only recyclables are going into that yellow-lid bin.

“In the meantime, Rockhampton will continue to offer the kerbside recycling service and work through the challenges but, as I’ve said, this is something Council cannot solve on its own.

“We will need all levels of Government and the community working together to keeps this service going into the future,” Cr Fisher said.

A full list on what to recycle can be found here.