Greater Geelong residents will have access to two free hard waste collections a year, after council extended the service for a further 12 months from July.
Households which have already had a hard waste collection will be able to book another collection before the end of June and then twice from July 2020 to July 2021.
The list of accepted items has also been expanded to include mattresses, which are one of the region's most illegally dumped items.
The trial has been hugely successful with 20,300 bookings since it started in March last year, equating to 18 per cent of all households across the municipality booking a free collection. Over the past 12 months, 2484 tonnes of waste material was collected of which over a quarter was diverted from landfill and recycled.
By diverting waste from landfill into recycling streams, this program has saved the community the equivalent of $85,000.
Stage four coronavirus (COVID-19) restrictions have seen a significant increase in the program's uptake, as residents use the time to clean up around the home.
Visit our hard waste page or call 03 5272 5444 during business hours to make a hard waste collection booking.
The decision is in line with Council's recently adopted 10-year Waste & Resource Recovery Strategy, which aims to increase recycling and reduce waste to landfill. The service complements a range of existing waste programs, which provide free or low-cost ways to conveniently dispose of a wide range of items.
Councillor Stephanie Asher - Mayor
This is a real win for the community, which has enthusiastically supported the program since it started last year.
Including mattresses in the program will not only save residents time disposing of them correctly, but see less mattresses illegally dumped around the municipality and therefore reduce the City's clean-up costs.
Councillor Ron Nelson - Chair, Waste Management portfolio
We've responded to the community's needs by expanding the service to two collections and by including the collection of mattresses, which will reduce landfill and the amount of household items illegally dumped. The program is a great opportunity for residents to do the right thing and I urge them to make a booking.
The service has diverted waste from landfill for recycling, which is a great result for the community and the environment.
