Mayors Message Thursday 30 September 2021

Between pandemics and earthquakes, I think the planet is trying to tell us something. Some may say that something is a load of rubbish and they may be right.

Rubbish is fast becoming one of our most serious environmental and financial local challenges.

As David Attenborough once said “We live our comfortable lives in the shadow of a disaster of our own making. That disaster is being brought about by the very things that allow us to live our comfortable lives.”

At present we are digging holes to bury our waste at a cost of $2.9m every second year. That is a weekly spend of $28,000, or $4000 a day. With indirect expenses the costs are even more frightening. It is unsustainable, both financially and environmentally.

The City of Ballarat collects 5000 garbage trucks full of waste per year and 50,000 tonnes goes to our Ballarat Regional Landfill. Of those 50,000 tonnes, 10,000 tonnes in glass, aluminium, plastics and paper could be recyclable. Data shows that 20% of what goes in the Ballarat garbage bin, should be going in the yellow bin.

Just as vaccination is showing us the way out of lockdowns, our way out of being buried under an unsustainable waste system is through each of us owning the responsibility of reducing what we buy, reuse, and recycle.

The City of Ballarat is currently reassessing all their waste operations. We’re seeking government support to create a Circular Economy Precinct at the Ballarat West Employment Zone and we’re also looking for support to build a Materials Recovery Facility to anchor the Circular Economy Precinct.

Ballarat is a smart, resilient city. We have proven that when our community is at risk, we respond collectively and with purpose. Our growing waste problem can be mitigated through acting now collaboratively.

I would urge everyone to think about the ugly side of landfill and start making sure we bin our waste correctly.

Mayor

Cr Daniel Moloney