In a meeting of administrators on Wednesday, October 23, Moira Shire Council Chair Administrator Graeme Emonson said other councils had introduced fees, which had been in place for some time.
“This recommendation ... does bring us in line, particularly with our neighbouring councils who have gone done this pathway before us,” he said.
Currently, Moira Shire Council pays $116.76 per tonne of clean fill waste to the Environmental Protection Agency for disposal.
“This matter comes to us tonight as a mechanism to recognise the substantial costs associated with managing landfill, and particularly the substantial cost levied against council for every tonne of waste at our sites,” Dr Emonson said.
Clean fill is uncontaminated material used to cover landfill waste at transfer stations, and is considered part of a shire’s industrial waste.
It is mandatory for councils to cover the face of a landfill with a layer of soil at least 0.3m thick.
Under state government amendments to the Environment Protection Act 2017 (Vic), councils are required to pay a levy for their industrial waste.
In the last financial year, council paid the EPA $170,075.70 for accepting 1495.96 tonnes of clean fill waste at the Cobram Transfer Station.
The $50 per tonne charge will be effective from January 1, 2025.
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