RUBBISH bins overflowing in Bass Coast’s seaside towns with babies’ nappies, bags of prawn shells and other food waste, between Christmas and the Australia Day Long Weekend, are a common sight… and smell.

That’s especially so around short-term rental accommodation.

Cr Ron Bauer, a resident of Phillip Island, is someone who has to live with it.

He can’t tell you the number of times he’s been stopped in the street and asked why the council can’t collect the “red-top bin” each week, instead of fortnightly, over the summer holidays, and he wants it in the next waste contract, soon to be reviewed.

He’d also like to see council fund a free hard rubbish collection annually.

So, on Wednesday, August 20, when council was debating its Long Term Financial Plan (LTFP), he suggested that if the council was successful in its advocacy against the mandatory introduction of a fourth “purple-top bin” (by July 1, 2027), exclusively for glass bottle collection, they should put the $3.5 million they save towards the cost of a summer red-top bin service.

The council was debating a motion to approve the draft LTFP for community consultation and to consider its adoption at either the September or October council meeting. The $3.5 million for the fourth bin is a line item in that plan, proposed for 2027-28, and referred to four times in the plan.

But the Mayor Cr Rochelle Halstead sought to rule Cr Bauer’s comments, about swapping the $3.5 million for the proposed fourth bin, to a holiday red-bin collection out of order.

“Cr Bauer, I’m just going to pull you up on that Cr Bauer…” started Cr Halstead towards the end of the rouge councillor’s statement, but he concluded his remarks all the same.

“The next time I give a directive I want you to cease speaking because you are introducing into this chamber something that is not part of the debate or part of the decision before us in relation to the $3.5 million or where it should or should not be spent,” said Cr Halstead.

But, according to the shire’s own Governance Rules (Part C Meetings Procedure, Division 4 Motions and Debate, Debate must be relevant to the motion: “Debate must always be relevant to the motion before the Chair, and, if not, the Chair must request the speaker to confine debate to the motion… a speaker to whom a direction has been given under sub-Rule 39.2 must comply with that direction.”

Cr Bauer said afterwards said he was surprised to be pulled up by the Mayor.

“I don’t know why she pulled me up,” he said, denying there had been any prior arrangement between councillors not to debate the substance of the Long Term Financial Plan.

“That would be regarded as apprehended bias. You can’t do that.”

Apprehended bias relates to decision makers not being able to discharge their responsibilities with sufficient level of impartiality.

“I thought that what I was saying was relevant to the debate.”

The fourth bin directive comes from the State Government under its controversial Circular Economy (Waste Reduction and Recycling) Act 2021.

About 30 Victorian councils have banded together to try to stop the mandated rollout of glass-only bins across the state, arguing the $129 million recycling scheme will force a record increase in waste disposal charges to households.

Instead of buying a fourth, purple-lidded bin for each property, the group of councils wants to see the state’s container deposit scheme expanded to include glass wine and spirits bottles, a move that would follow other states.

All 79 Victorian councils have a deadline of July 1, 2027 to introduce glass-only recycling. Twenty-three councils have already started kerbside collections of purple glass-only bins, and another 16 have a drop-off-only service.

They include: Bass Coast, Buloke, Campaspe, City of Ballarat, City of Greater Bendigo, City of Greater Geelong, City of Port Phillip, East Gippsland, Gannawarra, Hepburn, Indigo, Loddon, Mt Alexander, Southern Grampians and Towong.

The Allan government faces growing opposition to the scheme among the 40 councils that are yet to move from a recycling system in which glass is mixed with plastics and paper.

Bass Coast is against introducing a fourth bin but there’s no sign of the State Government backing down.

“At this stage, no decision has been made as to whether Bass Coast will introduce a fourth kerbside bin. Drop off facilities for glass have already been introduced at Council’s waste facilities, and simply ceasing to accept glass in kerbside recycling bins may be an acceptable option,” according to the Engage Bass Coast website.

The cost of dealing with household and commercial waste is a feature of the long term financial plan.

“Projected annual underlying results range from a deficit of $5.2 million to $9.9 million deficit with a 10-year average deficit of $8.1 million. Delivery of these deficits is heavily impacted by the continuing operational waste management costs and increase in depreciation charges.”

Among the projected waste costs in the Long Term Financial Plan include:

• Waste Transfer Stations Network Development projected to cost $45 million in future years,
• Waste Renewal and Replacement $8.3m over 10 years,
• Phillip Island Transfer Station $13m
• Grantville Landfill & Transfer Station Waste Facilities Hook-Lift Truck 420,000 (2025-26).