COUNCIL’S WASTE FACILITIES REMAIN OPEN FOR ESSENTIAL BUSINESS
The community is being assured that essential waste is still being received at its facilities, albeit with restrictions in place to protect the safety of Dubbo Regional Council (DRC) staff and the community. Under the Public Health Order, people are only permitted to leave home for a strict set of reasons, and while it doesn’t permit residents to attend the tip, it does allow a prescribed list of businesses and commercial waste operators to continue working.
Residents who receive a regular kerbside collection service are continuing to have their waste collected, they just won’t be able to bring any surplus rubbish, including green waste, to Council’s facilities until the lockdown is lifted. This also applies to residents who have a two-bin general waste and recycling service. Exemptions apply for rural waste customers that do not have a kerbside collection, who for sanitation reasons, are still able to bring their waste to Council’s facilities.
“We understand that this might be incredibly frustrating for residents who are using this lockdown period to do a big cleanout. We ask that if you are doing this and the rubbish doesn’t fit in your regular kerbside bin, consider engaging the services of a registered business to dispose of your rubbish. This not only supports a local business, but reduces the number of people risking the safety of themselves and our staff to pay a visit to Council’s facilities,” said Manager Resource Recovery and Efficiency John Wisniewski.
ABN-holding businesses carrying out essential activities, as prescribed under the current Public Health Order, are able to attend Council’s facilities. Businesses carrying out the below work are considered essential, and may make a booking to attend Council’s waste facilities:
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Work in relation to renovation/ repairs/ maintenance
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Swimming pool maintenance
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Gardening/ lawn mowing maintenance
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Cleaning and pest control services.
If your business fits any of these criteria, and you do not operate a truck or tipper, you will need to book into a timeslot that suits you, by calling (02) 6801 4000. If you drive a truck or tipper, you do not need to book in as you will not need to get out of your vehicle. If you need to book, you will need to arrive five minutes before your time slot; however, if you miss your allocated time, you will need to re-book. This is to avoid having multiple people inside the waste facility at a time.
“We ask for your patience at the moment, as we work through these changes together. We want to allay any concerns for our rural waste customers; you will still be able to dispose of your rubbish. If you do not have a three bin service, but still have green waste, we ask that you please hang onto that organic material until our facilities reopen, or engage the services of a local business to dispose of it for you, under the prescribed work activities,” said Mr Wisniewski.
Dubbo Regional Council wants to apologise to the community for any inconvenience this may cause, and asks for patience and kindness for Council staff who are trying to do the right thing to keep the community safe. If you have any questions about the provision of waste services during this time, reach out to Council’s Customer Experience Team on (02) 6801 4000.
Last Edited: 17 Jul 2023