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Tas Councils rewarded for excellence

Winners of the 1997 Local Government Awards for Excellence were announced during the annual Conference of the Local Government Association of Tasmania (LGAT) in May. Northern Midlands Council won the major award, the William Adam-Boral Resources Award, for its Waste Management Strategy.

When Northern Midlands was created in 1993, the new Council was faced with eight different landfill sites, many of which had been identified by Environment Tasmania as having poor management. Kerbside collections existed in only half of the Council's towns. To address the problem, Council embarked on an extensive program to improve services, increase financial efficiency and adopt environmentally responsible practices.

Among the changes instituted were streamlining the management of transfer stations, introducing more efficient and expanded kerbside collection services, as well as better landfill management.

The number of transfer stations was reduced and charges applied for services along with performance based contracts for attendants. A single contractor was employed to handle the three stations to improve economies of scale. Landfill sites were closed and waste transferred to a central site in Launceston.

A long term contract for fortnightly refuse and kerbside recycling collections was established. To reduce waste, make collection safer and reduce the capacity for animals to topple bins and spread rubbish, 140 litre wheelie bins and 50 litre recycling crates were introduced. Finally, a landfill site for inert material was established to ensure only perishable waste goes into landfill.

Commenting on the reasons for Northern Midlands win, the judges noted that Council had attacked the whole field of waste management on a strategic basis.

In other awards a special Certificate of Commendation was won by Circular Head Council for its commitment to sound management practices and operations which benefit the small community.

Two Outstanding Entries were also acknowledged in the Awards, Georgetown Council for its Resource Sharing with Works Tasmania (now known as Civil Construction Corporation). Under the agreement, Georgetown was able to achieve access to a larger administrative base, reduce costs for management and supervision, improved procedures and accessibility to specialised plant and expertise.

Finally, Tasman Council received an Outstanding Entry Award in recognition of the contribution of its Community Development program to the ongoing recovery process the district is going through in the wake of the Port Arthur tragedy.

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