THE region could be set for a major overhaul of rubbish collection if one local councillor has her way.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Tamworth Regional councillor Juanita Wilson is fed up with the amount of trash littered through local streets and wants to see changes outside of the regular weekly collections.
She has asked council to look into offering an additional service where residents can get their bulky waste collected on demand for a reasonable fee.
Currently, Tamworth council residents get their bulky waste goods collected for free twice a year.
The alternative is to leave it as it is, which is just not tenable.
- Tamworth councillor Juanita Wilson
The calls were triggered, she said, by the constant sight of waste and household goods left on nature strips around town.
She said she was particularly irked by a “burnt-out lounge outside a residence” near The Youthie in Coledale.
“The alternative is to leave it as it is, which is just not tenable,” Cr Wilson told The Leader.
Staff will now investigate the proposal and prepare a report for councillors. If the move gets in principle support by council, it would see a big change to the way services are currently operated in the region.
“We need to look at another service which offers the opportunity for rubbish to be collected in-between normal schedules,” she told council.
In the meantime, concerns about covering the cost of a such an initiative have already arisen.
Cr Wilson has initially backed a “fee-for-service” model, where residents could ask to have their waste collected for an appropriate cost.
At this week’s council meeting, mayor Col Murray suggested a system where people are delivered a fine for having the additional trash collected. Cr Wilson said, either way, there needs to be a degree of accountability on the residents.
“It has to be done,” she said. “The current services are good, but they are obviously not fulfilling the needs of the community.” She said it would be a “community future building” exercise if the move was eventually delivered.
“It sets a poor example for kids with waste just left out on the street,” Cr Wilson said