02 6499 2222 council@begavalley.nsw.gov.au
Bega Valley Commemorative Civic Centre South East Centre for Contemporary Art (SECCA) Bega Valley Shire Library Sapphire Aquatic Centre Sapphire Coast Tourism
Have your say

Waste Strategy Development

The project will review and update Council’s adopted 'Recycling the Future' Waste and Resource Recovery Strategy 2018-2028, setting a new time horizon of 2025-2035.

Aerial view of our Central Waste Facility

Project Summary/background

Council’s adopted “Recycling the Future” Waste and Resource Recovery Strategy 2018-2028 is due for review and update. The project will redevelop the strategy, reflecting on progress against the existing objectives and ensuring a new strategy is fit for the future based on evolving community needs/wants, technology, environment and regulation.

Bega Valley Shire Council is responsible for providing waste collection and waste management services to its community. These services are highly technical, both scientific and engineered, requiring a carefully considered balance of operational activity, asset management and business administration to achieve strategic outcomes. Waste operations are also heavily regulated with direct influence from Federal and State government applying to local government waste operations.

A service area strategy is required to guide the provision of services now and into the future that; is fit for purpose, meets our legislative requirements, meets community expectations, is sustainable, and aligns insofar as is possible with adopted and emerging best practice.

Purpose

The key objectives of the strategy are:

  • Meet our legislative requirements
  • Meet applicable Federal and State Government waste targets
  • Outline the community’s desires of the service
  • Define the Council’s waste management and recycling service
  • Outline how Council will deliver the service in a safe, sustainable and prioritised way
  • Establish a program to deliver any changes required of the service and its assets via projects
  • Integrate the strategy with Council’s Resourcing Strategy and other relevant strategies and plans to enable its realisation.

Funding

The project is an operational project funded from the Waste Fund. The total project budget estimate is $170,238 covering internal salaries (sunk cost), community engagement materials, waste auditing consultants and minor project administration costs.

Connection to Council's Community Strategic Plan

The Waste Strategy sits across two CSP Themes: Our Environment and Our Infrastructure.

The Strategy meets our commitment to the following CSP Strategies:

  • C.3. Collaborate with partners and our community to support innovative approaches to waste minimisation and increase reuse and recycling opportunities
  • D.1. Plan for community infrastructure and services that will meet current and future needs
  • D.2. Provide infrastructure and services to meet the needs of residents in our towns, villages and rural areas

The development of the strategy also involves the “Our Civic Leadership” CSP Theme, and the following CSP Strategies in that theme.

  • E.2. Ensure the community has opportunities to actively engage and contribute in a timely manner to the things that affect their daily lives using relevant and varied communication channels
  • E.3. Councillors, council staff and the community work in partnership to identify and deliver community aspirations
  • E.4. Council has robust financial management processes to ensure ongoing viability and value for money
  • E.5. Council resources are managed in order to meet agreed service delivery standards and deliver value for money
  • E.6. Council decision making seeks to optimize environmental, social and economic outcomes for our community, while mitigating financial, legal, environmental, reputational and safety risks.

Related documents

Our current strategy: Recycling The Future, Waste and Resource Recovery Strategy 2018-2028

Customer satisfaction survey: Listening Report 2024

Related page

Nominate for a place on our Waste Strategy Community Working Group

 

Who to talk to

Tim Cook
Waste Strategy Coordinator 
Bega Valley Shire Council
Phone: (02) 6499 2207
Email: TCook@begavalley.nsw.gov.au

 

Timeline of works

The project kicks off in July 2023 and seeks adoption by Council resolution in February 2025. Key dates for the community:


  • July 2023

    Project kick-off.

  • July - August 2023

    Establish Community Working Group

  • September 23, February 2024, June to August 2024 (TBC)

    Community workshops

  • February - March 2024

    “Have your say” on service levels and service satisfaction 

  • October 2024

    Initial draft

  • January 2025 - February 2025

    Public exhibition of draft strategy

  • April 2025

    Councillor determination

Frequently Asked Questions


A: The NSW Waste and Sustainable Materials Strategy 2041 released by the Department of Primary Industries and Environment sets the states strategic direction for waste management. Some of the targets include:

  • reduce total waste generated by 10% per person by 2030
  • have an 80% average recovery rate from all waste streams by 2030
  • significantly increase the use of recycled content by governments and industry
  • phase out problematic and unnecessary plastics by 2025
  • halve the amount of organic waste sent to landfill by 2030
  • reduce litter by 60% by 2030 and plastics litter by 30% by 2025
  • triple the plastics recycling rate by 2030

More information is available at Strategic direction for waste in NSW.

A: The strategy will look holistically at waste operations and service levels, which drive service costs and therefore impacts fees and charges to ratepayers and residents, but the strategy doesn’t directly review the waste services fees and charges. That review is done annually and adopted each financial year by resolution of the Council.

A: Yes. The project is planning three discreet activities to ensure the community has input into the strategy. Firstly, a small community working group will be established with up to 8 community members to help the project workshop the service vision, levels of service, strengths and weaknesses of the existing service, opportunities and challenges in enhancing the service, and what benefits improvement activities should achieve.

Secondly, an early “Have your Say” and community satisfaction survey will be conducted where all shire residents can contribute to what they like, dislike, want and don’t want of Council’s waste services. This will be conducted well before the initial draft of the strategy is prepared, so that it can incorporate community wants and needs.

Lastly, a final “Have your Say” will be conducted when the draft strategy is placed on public exhibition. Feedback at this stage will be included in a listening report for Councillors to consider before deciding whether or not to adopt the strategy. If the strategy can be adapted to include the feedback received, it will be.


 

News and Updates

 

© Bega Valley Shire Council 2025

Our council websites

Contact Us

Follow us

Sign up for newsletters