City of Greater Geraldton signs new deal on waste

Geraldton’s waste will be given a new lease on life and less will go into landfill thanks to two new machines the City has secured for the next decade.

An Edge shredder and trommel have been set up at the Meru Landfill Site to process general household waste, food organic and garden organic waste, green waste, construction and demolition material, and even bulky items such as mattresses.

City of Greater Geraldton to phase in two-bin plan

Get the lowdown on where you can recycle in Geraldton

City to investigate reinstating verge rubbish collection, skip bin program “too popular”

Some waste streams can now be shredded and then separated with the trommel for reuse throughout the city by the local government, including as mulch, with what can’t be reused more easily compacted into landfill, extending the life of the land cell.

The City of Greater Geraldton has entered into an agreement with the existing managers of the Meru Waste Disposal Facility for the next 10 years, which includes the provision of the new equipment.

Cleanaway WA and NT general manager Brad Gornall said the new contract involved changing how the rubbish tip was operated.

It means we don’t have to put everything into landfill, which is good for the environment...but if we can extend the life of our land cells for a few more years by improved waste diversion and compaction, it’s a saving for the ratepayer.

“As part of the FOGO program, which is really important to the City and part of their waste strategy and their plan — we’ve jumped on board and invested in some equipment to process that material to remove it from landfill,” he said.

“Previously, before the FOGO collections commenced, that waste was actually going into general bin and sent into the landfill cells. So now we’ve proactively provided a solution to manage that product.

“We will also look to shred some general waste as well which will save air space for the City and again reduce the amount of waste going into the land cell.”

City of Greater Geraldton acting director development and community services Brian Robartson said the landfill’s new processing capabilities would benefit the environment and save the local government money.

“It means we don’t have to put everything into landfill, which is good for the environment,” he said.

“If we can extend the life of our land cells for a few more years by improved waste diversion and compaction, it’s a saving for the ratepayer by not having capital funds allocated for these projects.”