Waste Fees and Charges

A full list of current waste fees and charges can be viewed on Council’s Rates Fees and Charges website. 

Note that, as of 1 July 2022, Council will no longer accept the use of household waste vouchers for the disposal of general waste. Instead, Council introduced the availability of four free green waste transactions per household, per financial year. 

More information about this system can be viewed on Council’s Green Waste Voucher website. 

Notice – Transitional Period for the Introduction of New Commercial Waste Fees Ending 31 December 2022 

In accordance with the decision made at Council’s General Meeting held Tuesday 26 July 2022, to post-pone the introduction of waste fees relating to sorted and unsorted commercial waste, this transitional period is coming to an end on 31 December 2022. 

From 1 January 2023, commercial customers will be charged at the below rates depending on whether the waste load in question is co-mingled with recyclables. 

Where a customer presents at the Warrens Hill Landfill and Resource Recovery Centre with a Sorted waste load (i.e. all recyclables removed or separated out for disposal within the correct areas) they will be charged at the rate of $210.75 per tonne (note that a minimum charge applies to all loads). 

On the other hand, where a customer presents with an Unsorted load of commercial wastes, they will be charged at the higher rate of $305 per tonne.  

The key drivers for this approach can be mainly attributed towards the cost of landfilling and the Shire’s diminishing available landfill space. A summary of these implications is presented as follows: 

• Queensland Waste Levy 

As of 1 July 2019, the Queensland Government introduced the Waste Levy, applicable to all waste being placed in landfill. The purpose behind the levy is to encourage recycling and resource recovery by penalising landfilling. The levy currently sits at $85 per tonne and will increase in rate with the CPI increase every 1 July for regional areas.  

The rate that has been presented by the Queensland Government for the 2022-2023 FY is $88 per tonne, payable by Council to the Government. Council must recover these charges by adding it to the fees associated with landfilling. 

• Available Landfill Space 

Hinchinbrook Shire only has one operating landfill, located within the Warrens Hill Landfill and Resource Recovery Centre. According to recent modelling, the landfill will be full by 2035 if current consumption rates continue.  

If resource recovery efforts were to improve, this lifespan could be extended. 

To support this, Council is introducing the approach of charging higher fees for unsorted commercial waste streams.