{"id":235779,"date":"2019-05-17T20:02:03","date_gmt":"2019-05-17T10:02:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=235779"},"modified":"2020-07-20T11:48:25","modified_gmt":"2020-07-20T01:48:25","slug":"gympie-axes-tip-fee-hikes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2019\/05\/17\/gympie-axes-tip-fee-hikes\/","title":{"rendered":"Gympie Axes Tip Fee Hikes"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Gympie Regional Council has dropped its decision to increase tip fees by between 20 and 60 per cent on July 1 after re-examining the impact of the Waste Levy on Council’s finances<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Gympie Mayor Mick Curran<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

May 17, 2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Less than a month after announcing it would substantially increase tip fees on July 1, Gympie Regional Council (GRC) has axed the idea.<\/p>\n

Last month, the Council announced a plan to increase its dumping fees for household waste by 20 to 60 per cent, blaming the State Government’s $75-per-tonne Waste Levy for the rise.<\/p>\n

Under the plan, the cost of taking up to a wheelie bin\u2019s worth of rubbish to a GRC landfill would have increased from $5.40 to $6.50.<\/p>\n

The cost of a ute, van or single axle trailer load would have risen to $28.90 (up from $17), and owners of larger trailers and light commercial vehicles would have paid $60 (up from $36) to dump their rubbish.<\/p>\n

But on Friday, the Council announced it has slashed the fee rises.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Prices for wheelie bin loads will now only rise from $5.40 to $5.50; single-axle trailer loads from $17 to $17.50; and dual-axle loads from $36 to $37.<\/p>\n

Gympie Mayor Mick Curran said the levy legislation had changed several times since it was brought in, and this had caused some confusion.<\/p>\n

Councillors had instructed staff the levy should be charged at the gate.<\/p>\n

However, Council has now re-examined the impact of the levy and the rebates it will receive from the State Government and decided not to adopt the new charges.<\/p>\n

GRC introduced tip fees in 2017 in exchange for making several changes to its fees and charges.<\/strong><\/p>\n

These included dropping GRC’s kerbside collection price by more than $20; abolishing the $85 Waste Levy; and axing the $90 and $230 annual charges for former Cooloola and Kilkivan Shire Council residents who had no waste collection service.<\/p>\n

Mayor Curran said a bonus of the more modest increases is that from July 1, lawn clippings and processed or mulched green waste will now be free to dump at GRC landfills.<\/p>\n