SW need to share waste site: report

A report has recommended building a regional landfill near Elgin to cater for the increase in waste from the rapidly growing South West region.

A Talis Consulting report deemed by Bunbury City Council as confidential predicted the 12 local government areas between Bunbury and Margaret River would produce about 286,000 tonnes of waste annually by 2030.

That figure is a 38.8 per cent increase on the latest statistics, which show 206,000 tonnes of waste produced by the 12 councils representing a total population of about 168,000.

The report made two major recommendations to deal with the growing waste - the first being a regional landfill to replace individual facilities and the second for the construction of a waste-to-energy facility.

Six locations in the South West were identified for a regional landfill - which could cater for 100,000 tonnes of waste a year - but the recommendation was for it to be built near Gavins Gully Road in Elgin.

The report notes that a regional landfill site would be about $100 a tonne cheaper than each local government managing its own landfill.

The report also suggested building a waste-to-energy facility for the region but highlighted a number of challenges - including that this option was more expensive than building landfills.

The report is the first stage in what is expected to be lengthy discussion on the regional waste management proposal.

It will be discussed at a briefing session after tonight's Bunbury City Council meeting and councillors have suggested holding a joint meeting of all councils to discuss the next stage of the plan.

Bunbury Mayor Gary Brennan has doubts over the future of the landfill managed by Bunbury Harvey Regional Council and wants the council to focus on increasing its recycling.