Thursday, 18 August 2022

Northern Victoria Region

Mr QUILTY (Northern Victoria) (12:44): (1932) My constituency question is for the Minister for Environment and Climate Action. Last week while meeting with Bendigo council I heard that the Eaglehawk landfill will reach capacity by the end of 2022. Alternative facilities are needed urgently. Rather than struggle through the bureaucracy involved in establishing a new landfill site, Bendigo council are proposing to establish a waste-to-energy facility. Councils around Victoria are complaining about the way the EPA landfill levy is managed. The government takes the money, pockets part for admin and refuses to spend the rest. Bendigo have paid around $35 million in levies over the last five years for their own landfill site but have seen very little money returned. Only about 3 per cent of funds raised from this levy are returned to the regions—one more example of this government ripping money out of regional Victoria. Minister, will you support Bendigo council’s new waste-to-energy project with money from the landfill levy? It is time that Northern Victoria councils got some value for money from the landfill levy that they pay.