Rural Landfill Collection Trial

Hi Paul and Rennae,

Thanks for your feedback about the proposed rural landfill collection changes.

The change to fortnightly landfill bin collection is based on a detailed review of our current service, including audits, a recent trial, and comparison with neighbouring councils – all of which already collect landfill bins fortnightly for their rural residents. Our recent trial showed up to 58% of landfill bin contents in rural areas are compostable or recyclable.

We understand waste minimisation and correct management of waste/recycling is challenging, which is why we’re communicating this proposed change early in order to give residents time to assess and adjust their waste practices prior to the collection changes.

First, I’ll explain how the fee reduction was calculated. You currently have 3 collections a fortnight (2 landfill, 1 recycling), which will change to 2 collections a fortnight in October (1 landfill, 1 recycling). This is a 1/3 reduction in bin collections, rather than a ½ reduction.

The annual rural waste charge reduction from $391 to $340 for the 2025/26 financial year is directly proportionate to the reduction in the cost of reducing the service frequency and estimated lower volume of landfill waste that will be generated through improved recycling practices.

The cost of collecting waste and recycling bins only makes up about 30% of the total cost to deliver the full domestic waste service. The remaining costs come from processing and disposing of waste and recycling (63%), and education and administration (7%).

For the current 2024/25 rural service, the $391 annual charge breaks down to approximately:

• $75 for bin collection (weekly landfill and fortnightly recycling)
• $286 for processing and disposal
• $30 for education and admin

Modelling from a recent trial shows that changing to fortnightly landfill collection could reduce the overall service cost by $73 per household, based on:

• A $25 saving in collection costs (fewer pickups)
• A $48 saving in disposal costs (less waste being generated)

However, due to rising operational costs across the waste service, Council is applying a 5.5% increase to all domestic waste charges in 2025/26. For rural residents, this adds $22 back to the annual charge.

As a result, the proposed rural charge for 2025/26 would be $340. This is a $51 reduction compared to the current charge of $391.

The proposed changes will align our rural collection service model with that of all surrounding Northern Rivers Councils that provide a rural fortnightly landfill bin collection frequency. The below table benchmarks our proposed annual rural domestic waste management charge against that of our neighbouring council’s (which will increase for 2025/26).

I’m pleased to hear that you manage your green waste at home, but the most common material found in rural landfill bins is food waste. Organic waste, like food scraps and garden clippings, creates problems in landfill. It breaks down without oxygen and produces methane, a greenhouse gas much stronger than carbon dioxide. These materials also contain nutrients that are great for soil health. Composting turns them into useful soil conditioners instead of harmful waste. Organic waste also takes up limited landfill space and being heavy, is costly to transport to landfill. By recycling and composting, we can save space, reduce pollution, and make better use of our resources.

We are providing composting support as well as other information on correct recycling and waste minimisation in order to support our residents to reduce waste generation overall, and send less to landfill.

You can find waste management information, including details on the rural household trial and comprehensive FAQs, on Council’s website at Rural Landfill Bin Collection Changes | Ballina Shire Council . We will send more information regarding the supports available to your address in the coming months, but feel free to reach back out if you’d like more information.

I hope this information clears up your questions. If you’d like to provide additional feedback, please follow this link: Delivery Program and Operational Plan 2025/26 | Your Say Ballina.

Hi Karen,

Thanks for your question about the proposed rural rubbish collection changes. We understand every household is different, especially larger families like yours.

The change to fortnightly landfill bin collection is based on a detailed review of our current service, including audits, a recent trial, and comparison with neighbouring councils – all of which already collect landfill bins fortnightly. Our recent trial showed up to 58% of landfill bin contents in rural areas are compostable or recyclable.

We understand waste minimisation and correct management of waste/recycling is challenging, which is why we’re communicating this proposed change early in order to give residents time to assess and adjust their waste practices prior to the collection changes.

We understand that young children come with a lot of excitement, as well as the potential for extra waste. If your household has ever considering switching to reusable nappies, or combining reusables with disposables in a way that suits you and your family, have a look at our recently launched Reusable Products Rebate: Reusable Products Rebate | Ballina Shire Council. Nappies, period and continence products are the fourth most common items in landfill bins across the Shire, which is why we launched this rebate, offering 50% back on the purchase price of reusable versions of those items to help residents make the switch. For nappies you can receive up to $150 back off the purchase price, but please see the website for full terms and conditions.

If you are not using reusable nappies, best practice is to flush as much poo down the toilet as possible and wrap the used nappies tightly in a biodegradable nappy or plastic bag.

Larger households may create more waste, but Council’s standard bin service is designed for average-sized homes. If your household needs more capacity, you can order extra bins – an additional landfill  bin (serviced fortnightly) will  cost $140 per year.

 an additional  recycling bin (serviced fortnightly) will  cost $114 per year.

We’re not offering fee reductions for using the Resource Recovery Centre, but many items – like batteries, e-waste, and scrap metal – can already be dropped off for free. These should never go in the landfill bin.

To help households manage waste better, we’re offering free composting workshops and online advice which includes simple ways to prevent pests in compost bins. If there are other ways we can support your household, please let us know.

Up to date information, including details on the rural household trial and comprehensive FAQs, is available on Council’s website at Rural Landfill Bin Collection Changes | Ballina Shire Council .

I hope this information clears up your questions. If you’d like to provide additional feedback, please follow this link: Delivery Program and Operational Plan 2025/26 | Your Say Ballina.

Hi Marco, please have a closer look at my answers to other questions on this page, or to our website here Rural Landfill Bin Collection Changes | Ballina Shire Council, in order to understand the rationale behind these proposed changes.

Regarding how the fee reduction was calculated, rural residents currently have 3 collections a fortnight (2 landfill, 1 recycling), which will change to 2 collections a fortnight in October (1 landfill, 1 recycling). This is a 1/3 reduction in bin collections, not a ½ reduction.

The annual rural waste charge reduction from $391 to $340 for the 2025/26 financial year is directly proportionate to the reduction in the cost of reducing the service frequency and estimated lower volume of landfill waste that will be generated through improved recycling practices.

The cost of collecting waste and recycling bins only makes up about 30% of the total cost to deliver the full domestic waste service. The remaining costs come from processing and disposing of waste and recycling (63%), and education and administration (7%).

For the current 2024/25 rural service, the $391 annual charge breaks down to approximately:

• $75 for bin collection (weekly landfill and fortnightly recycling)
• $286 for processing and disposal
• $30 for education and admin

Modelling from a recent trial shows that changing to fortnightly landfill collection could reduce the overall service cost by $73 per household, based on:

• A $25 saving in collection costs (fewer pickups)
• A $48 saving in disposal costs (less waste being generated)

However, due to rising operational costs across the waste service, Council is applying a 5.5% increase to all domestic waste charges in 2025/26. For rural residents, this adds $22 back to the annual charge.

As a result, the proposed rural charge for 2025/26 would be $340. This is a $51 reduction compared to the current charge of $391.

The proposed changes will align our rural collection service model with that of all surrounding Northern Rivers Councils that provide a rural fortnightly landfill bin collection frequency. The below table benchmarks our proposed annual rural domestic waste management charge against that of our neighbouring council’s (which will increase for 2025/26).

We will not be offering reduced fees to the Resource Recovery Centre as we already offer free drop off for a variety of items and our priority is to support residents to minimise waste production, so they do not need to visit the Resource Recovery Centre for general waste. Our audits since 2020 have also found rural residents placing items that do not belong in the landfill bin because it is collected weekly, making it an easy option. This includes hazardous or problem items such as batteries, light globes, electronic items or appliances, and scrap metal. None of these items should ever be placed in kerbside bins due to the risk they pose to human and environmental health, as well as the valuable materials they contain that should be recycled to be reused. All of those items mentioned (and more- see Resource Recovery Centre | Ballina Shire Council(External link)) are free to drop off at the Ballina Resource Recovery Centre. For smaller items such as batteries, there are additional drop off sites around the Shire. If you do choose to visit the Resource Recovery Centre, please be aware that the fees and charges increase 1 July each year in accordance with CPI (the free items remain free until otherwise indicated).

Ballina Shire Council does not offer a tip voucher service because we operate under a user pays system. This means we avoid penalising residents who wouldn’t use a tip voucher system in order to subsidise those that would. You can find more details about why a voucher system is not efficient or equitable here: tips-for-getting-rid-of-unwanted-items-factsheet-vjun2023.pdf.

I hope this information clears up your questions. If you’d like to provide additional feedback, please follow this link: Delivery Program and Operational Plan 2025/26 | Your Say Ballina.

Hi Kerr, please see the below answers to your questions.

How is the rural domestic waste charge calculated?

Rural residents currently have 3 collections a fortnight (2 landfill, 1 recycling), which will change to 2 collections a fortnight in October (1 landfill, 1 recycling). This is a 1/3 reduction in bin collections, not a ½ reduction.

The annual rural waste charge reduction from $391 to $340 for the 2025/26 financial year is directly proportionate to the reduction in the cost of reducing the service frequency and estimated lower volume of landfill waste that will be generated through improved recycling practices.

The cost of collecting waste and recycling bins only makes up about 30% of the total cost to deliver the full domestic waste service. The remaining costs come from processing and disposing of waste and recycling (63%), and education and administration (7%).

For the current 2024/25 rural service, the $391 annual charge breaks down to approximately:

• $75 for bin collection (weekly landfill and fortnightly recycling)
• $286 for processing and disposal
• $30 for education and admin

Modelling from a recent trial shows that changing to fortnightly landfill collection could reduce the overall service cost by $73 per household, based on:

• A $25 saving in collection costs (fewer pickups)
• A $48 saving in disposal costs (less waste being generated)

However, due to rising operational costs across the waste service, Council is applying a 5.5% increase to all domestic waste charges in 2025/26. For rural residents, this adds $22 back to the annual charge.

As a result, the proposed rural charge for 2025/26 would be $340. This is a $51 reduction compared to the current charge of $391.

The proposed changes will align our rural collection service model with that of all surrounding Northern Rivers Councils that provide a rural fortnightly landfill bin collection frequency. The below table benchmarks our proposed annual rural domestic waste management charge against that of our neighbouring council’s (which will increase for 2025/26).

How was the trial conducted?

The trial consisted of 80 households from 4 distinct rural areas (Rous Mill, Empire Vale, Fernleigh and Knockrow), including a diverse range of household sizes and demographics of only 1 to 10 or more depending on how many dwellings on the property. For 6 weeks in September and October 2024, they received a fortnightly landfill bin collection along with other targeted support.

Data from the review is summarised in the table below, which compares Ballina rural landfill bins from audits in 2020 and 2022, 2024 after the trial, with Byron’s rural bins (who have had fortnightly collection for over 15 years). The 2024 trial and Byron Shire’s 2023 data clearly show that a fortnightly collection, supported by education and home composting initiatives, delivers a more cost-effective and environmentally sustainable service.

I hope this information clears up your questions. If you’d like to provide additional feedback, please follow this link: Delivery Program and Operational Plan 2025/26 | Your Say Ballina.

 Hi Daphnie,

We understand that households across our Shire have different waste-related circumstances. The proposed change to the collection frequency of rural landfill bins is the result of a comprehensive review of the rural bin collection service, which highlighted an ongoing and consistently poor environmental performance level. This review included analysis of historic bin composition audits conducted in 2020 and 2022, the trial results from 2024, ongoing analysis of historic rural waste generation data trends, comparison and alignment with best practice guidelines from state and federal governments, and with the performance of our neighbouring Council’s collection service performance, all of whom have a fortnightly landfill bin collection frequency.

We acknowledge that larger families and households may generate more waste than smaller households; however, there is no reason to assume that Ballina rural residents generate more waste than Ballina urban residents or rural residents of the rest of the Northern Rivers (Lismore, Byron, Tweed, Clarence Valley, and Richmond Valley), who all have a fortnightly landfill service. Rather than targeting rural residents, we are aiming to align our rural service with that of the region and to support our rural residents with proper waste management. We understand we are asking for some level of behaviour change, which is why we sent this first bit of information out in May, so that we have months to improve our waste management in time for the 1 October change date.

Please be aware that to maintain a practical and affordable level of service, Council’s 2-bin rural and 3-bin urban waste services are intended to capture waste generated by an average-sized household, and are not intended to support large households and/or home business. To cater for this, our services have always included the option to order additional landfill and recycle bins, the proposed 2025/26 fees for which are as follows:

1. Additional Rural Domestic Landfill bin - collected fortnightly - $140p.a
2. Additional Rural Domestic Recycling bin - collected fortnightly - $114p.a

The below table benchmarks our proposed annual rural domestic waste management charge against that of our neighbouring council’s (which will increase for 2025/26).

Please see my responses to other questions for more insight into how the domestic waste management charge is calculated.

By communicating with our rural residents early, we are aiming to support residents to evaluate and minimise their waste generation practices, so that only items that truly have no other option end up in landfill. Our audits show that 58% of the average weekly rural landfill bin could be composted or recycled, so for most households, correctly managing organic waste and removing all recyclables from the landfill bin should leave adequate space in the bin, even with a fortnightly collection. The trial conducted from September to October 2024 included a range of household sizes, who had their landfill bin collected fortnightly along with composting and recycling support. The bins had 18% capacity left a fortnight, showing the potential capacity left in a fortnightly landfill bin, if organic and recyclable materials are not landfilled.

We will not be offering reduced fees to the Resource Recovery Centre as we already offer free drop off for a variety of items and our priority is to support residents to minimise waste production, so they do not need to visit the Resource Recovery Centre for general waste. Our audits since 2020 have also found rural residents placing items that do not belong in the landfill bin because it is collected weekly, making it an easy option. This includes hazardous or problem items such as batteries, light globes, electronic items or appliances, and scrap metal. None of these items should ever be placed in kerbside bins due to the risk they pose to human and environmental health, as well as the valuable materials they contain that should be recycled to be reused. All of those items mentioned (and more- see Resource Recovery Centre | Ballina Shire Council) are free to drop off at the Ballina Resource Recovery Centre. For smaller items such as batteries, there are additional drop off sites around the Shire. If you do choose to visit the Resource Recovery Centre, please be aware that the fees and charges increase 1 July each year in accordance with CPI (the free items remain free until otherwise indicated).

We appreciate your concerns around litter and illegal dumping; however, those who choose to break the law and harm our environment by littering or dumping are already doing so with the current collection services. There is no data from our surrounding Shires with a fortnightly landfill bin collection service to indicate greater instances in illegal dumping.

Furthermore, the most common illegally dumped items in our Shire (furniture, carpets, mattresses, building waste, appliances) are not items that can go in any kerbside bin, so a change in collection frequency will not influence those who engage in illegal dumping practices. Thanks to the work by our Environmental Health Officers and by the NSW state government’s education campaign around illegal dumping, instances of dumping across our Shire have decreased each year since 2019. As a reminder, small scale illegal dumping carries on-the-spot fines of up to $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for corporations caught dumping. Maximum court-imposed penalties of $50,000 for individuals and $100,000 for corporations. Maximum penalties for large-scale waste dumping offences can exceed $2million and possible jail time.

We encourage all residents to be active in reporting illegal dumping by using the tool here: RID Online Public. You can find more information about illegal dumping including our Illegal Dumping and Litter Prevention Strategy 2023 – 2028 on our website here: Illegal Dumping and Litter | Ballina Shire Council. If you think that your street in particular needs to be monitored more closely, please email me with specifics at resourcerecovery@ballina.nsw.gov.au.

If there are other kinds of support that would help your household reduce waste generation and/or recycling behaviours, please let us know so we can consider them. 

I hope this information helps and thank you again for taking the time to provide feedback.

Hi Mel, 

You can provide feedback on the Council YourSay page which is accessed through the following link: Delivery Program and Operational Plan 2025/26 | Your Say Ballina. Feel free to email the Resource Recovery team at resourcerecovery@ballina.nsw.gov.au for additional questions, thanks.

Hi Frame,

Allow me to provide more detail on how the fee reduction was calculated. You currently have 3 collections a fortnight (2 landfill, 1 recycling), which will change to 2 collections a fortnight in October (1 landfill, 1 recycling). This is a 1/3 reduction in bin collections, rather than a ½ reduction.

The annual rural waste charge reduction from $391 to $340 for the 2025/26 financial year is directly proportionate to the reduction in the cost of reducing the service frequency and estimated lower volume of landfill waste that will be generated through improved recycling practices.

The cost of collecting waste and recycling bins only makes up about 30% of the total cost to deliver the full domestic waste service. The remaining costs come from processing and disposing of waste and recycling (63%), and education and administration (7%).

For the current 2024/25 rural service, the $391 annual charge breaks down to approximately:

• $75 for bin collection (weekly landfill and fortnightly recycling)
• $286 for processing and disposal
• $30 for education and admin

Modelling from a recent trial shows that changing to fortnightly landfill collection could reduce the overall service cost by $73 per household, based on:

• A $25 saving in collection costs (fewer pickups)
• A $48 saving in disposal costs (less waste being generated)

However, due to rising operational costs across the waste service, Council is applying a 5.5% increase to all domestic waste charges in 2025/26. For rural residents, this adds $22 back to the annual charge.

As a result, the proposed rural charge for 2025/26 would be $340. This is a $51 reduction compared to the current charge of $391.

The proposed changes will align our rural collection service model with that of all surrounding Northern Rivers Councils that provide a rural fortnightly landfill bin collection frequency. The below table benchmarks our proposed annual rural domestic waste management charge against that of our neighbouring council’s (which will increase for 2025/26).

I hope this clarifies how the fee was calculated and provides more insight in comparison to our neighbours. Find up to date information, including details on the rural household trial and comprehensive FAQs, on Council’s website at ballina.nsw.gov.au/RuralWasteChanges.

Hi Jim,

Thanks for your feedback. I’m assuming you’re referring to fortnightly collections in a negative way not weekly, so I’ll respond as such. These proposed changes are the result of a comprehensive review of our rural waste collection service, starting in 2020. All other councils of the Northern Rivers (Lismore, Tweed, Byron, Richmond Valley, Clarence Valley) have a fortnightly rural collection, so rather than taking a step backwards, these changes propose to align us with the region and with guidelines on best practice.

The below table benchmarks our proposed annual rural domestic waste management charge against that of our neighbouring council’s (which will increase for 2025/26), showing that ours is significantly lower than our neighbours for the same service.

Burnish rubbish is illegal under order from the NSW EPA and we strongly hope our rural residents would not engage in such unlawful practices damaging to both human and environmental health. If organic matter and recyclable material are managed appropriately and not landfilled, the average Ballina rural household should still have 18% capacity left in the bin fortnightly. If your household has particular waste challenges causing you to produce excessive waste beyond this capacity, please email or call our Resource Recovery team at resourcerecovery@ballina.nsw.gov.au or 02 6686 1287.

Hi Jared,

Thanks for your feedback. Allow me to do my best to respond to your various concerns.

First, I’ll explain how the fee reduction was calculated. You currently have 3 collections a fortnight (2 landfill, 1 recycling), which will change to 2 collections a fortnight in October (1 landfill, 1 recycling). This is a 1/3 reduction in bin collections, rather than a ½ reduction.

The annual rural waste charge reduction from $391 to $340 for the 2025/26 financial year is directly proportionate to the reduction in the cost of reducing the service frequency and estimated lower volume of landfill waste that will be generated through improved recycling practices.

The cost of collecting waste and recycling bins only makes up about 30% of the total cost to deliver the full domestic waste service. The remaining costs come from processing and disposing of waste and recycling (63%), and education and administration (7%).

For the current 2024/25 rural service, the $391 annual charge breaks down to approximately:

• $75 for bin collection (weekly landfill and fortnightly recycling)
• $286 for processing and disposal
• $30 for education and admin

Modelling from a recent trial shows that changing to fortnightly landfill collection could reduce the overall service cost by $73 per household, based on:

• A $25 saving in collection costs (fewer pickups)
• A $48 saving in disposal costs (less waste being generated)

However, due to rising operational costs across the waste service, Council is applying a 5.5% increase to all domestic waste charges in 2025/26. For rural residents, this adds $22 back to the annual charge.

As a result, the proposed rural charge for 2025/26 would be $340. This is a $51 reduction compared to the current charge of $391.

The proposed changes will align our rural collection service model with that of all surrounding Northern Rivers Councils that provide a rural fortnightly landfill bin collection frequency. The below table benchmarks our proposed annual rural domestic waste management charge against that of our neighbouring council’s (which will increase for 2025/26).

I’m pleased to hear that you compost and recycle at home. In our last rural audits, 58% of the contents of rural landfill bin contents could be composted or recycled so this change in collection frequency is partly aimed at encouraging people to manage organics and recycling appropriately. If your recycling bin is the same size as your landfill bin, please be aware that you can upgrade to a larger 360L recycling bin for free to provide your household more capacity. We encourage residents to consider what waste and recycling they’re producing and choose minimal packaging where possible and break down boxes along with other behaviours to maximise their recycling bin. We understand soft plastics are a frustrating issue, luckily they can be compacted quite easily so as not to take up much space in the bin. We advocate state and federal government for solutions to this issue and are anticipating developments this year, which we will communicate to our residents.

Please keep an eye out for the composting workshops we’ll be hosting for free or look for information on our website here: Home Composting and Worm Farming | Ballina Shire Council. There are a few simple steps to take to prevent rats/other pests from entering compost. We encourage residents to monitor the food waste they produce as well and not let meat or other edible food be wasted so that it doesn’t have to go into the landfill bin. We understand we’re asking for some behaviour change, but are committed to providing education and support in a variety of ways. There is no evidence to support negative health impacts of a fortnightly landfill bin collection compared to a weekly. Along with keeping organic waste out of landfill, our other top tips around managing smelly bins include storing bins in shade and out of direct sunlight where possible, make sure the lid closes properly without cracks (call our hotline on 02 6686 1287 if it needs replacing), and place a small amount of an odour control agent in the bottom of the bin (such as bicarbonate soda, eucalyptus or tea tree oil). Consider washing out bins using boiling water if you are not already, which helps kill maggots and fly eggs. 

Council will continue to keep rural residents updated in the lead-up to the 1 October change.

Up to date information, including details on the rural household trial and comprehensive FAQs, is available on Council’s website at ballina.nsw.gov.au/RuralWasteChanges.

I hope this information helps, particularly with clarifying the rationale behind the fee reduction.