A proposal for an organics facility at the Central Waste Facility in Wolumla remains under consideration. Photo: Bega Valley Shire Council.
Three years after the awarding of a major contract for a new waste facility, Bega Valley residents are still waiting for construction to start.
It was announced in June 2023 that the amount of organic waste being collected through Bega Valley Shire Council’s (BVSC) Food Organics Garden Organics (FOGO) program meant a new plant was needed.
Later that year, the council awarded an almost-$25 million contract to SOILCO Pty Ltd for the design, construction and operation of an Organics Processing Facility (OPF) near Wolumla.
Once built, it will be located at the Central Waste Facility (CWF).
Construction was expected to start this year.
The proposal remains under assessment by the Southern Regional Planning Panel – but a determination may be coming soon.
In a late April report, the panel recommended the project be given the green light, subject to conditions.
“The environmental impact statement details that the existing organics processing facility at the Merimbula Waste and Recycling Centre is over capacity and cannot be expanded at the existing site,” the report states.
“It is therefore considered to be a priority application given the need and the potential benefit to the local community of the proposed works.”
According to the council’s website, the facility is now expected to be operational by September 2027.
In response to questions from Region, council’s waste services manager Alan Gundrill said the DA was submitted in December 2024, several months later than planned, because of delays in preparation of a key report.
“[Independent assessments] are contained and summarised in the environmental impact statement (EIS),” he said.
“The assessment of the EIS documentation is thorough and requires referrals to several state government organisations for their input and approvals. This can be a lengthy process.”
Mr Gundrill said BVSC had applied for a temporary exemption for businesses from the statewide FOGO mandate.
“[There] were no changes to this project since the introduction of the statewide mandate for all businesses to receive a FOGO service,” he said.
“However, given that we do not have capacity to process additional FOGO volumes at the Merimbula organics processing facility, council has applied for an exemption for FOGO for business until the new facility is operational.”
According to the April report, the OPF will see the CWF site subdivided, with the newly-created Lot 403 to house the new facility.
“It would be leased to the contractor for the construction, operation and maintenance of an OPF,” the report states.
If approved, 15,000 tonnes per annum (TPA) of FOGO waste will be processed into compost through the first stage of the development.
In Stage 2, this will be expanded to up to 30,000 tonnes.
Mr Gundrill said the staged approach would allow for an increase in capacity.
“The second stage would only occur if volumes increase at a greater rate,” he said.
Further details of the project were heard in a recent council meeting.
At the time, councillors agreed to negotiate with eight privately-owned properties so there could be upgrades to nearby electricity infrastructure.
Meeting papers outline that this will require an upgraded 750 kVA substation, as well as upgrades to a 4.5-kilometre stretch of power lines.
Councillor Peter Haggar sought to put “more meat on those bones”, asking why that arrangement was being pursued.
In response, the council’s director of community, environment and development Emily Harrison said it was to ensure power supply could be managed in case of an outage.
She told the meeting that fans and other equipment at the FOGO facility would need to be turned on, which risked a surge.
“[To] run an organics processing facility, you have to have that reliable electricity infrastructure. Even if you’re not relying on it all the time, it’s got to be there,” she said.
Ms Harrison said a decision on the development application (DA) was expected “very soon, hopefully”.
The meeting papers state that the FOGO part of the project is expected to reach ‘testing mode’ by March 2027.
Mr Gundrill also said the new OPF was expected to be operational within two years of approval.
“Some parts for the construction of the facility are ordered from Europe and supply chain issues may delay this beyond the original timeframes provided,” he said.
“More information will be known after the approvals process and will be updated on our website.”
