2014-07-22 Infrastructure & Services Committee Agenda

INFRASTRUCTURE & SERVICES COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                   22 JULY 2014


4.   Workplace Health and Safety

One complaint was received in regard to Council permitting refrigerators to be placed on the
kerbside with the doors still attached claiming this was unlawful in Victoria. The complainant also
placed a letter to the editor of the Noosa News and Noosa Today. The complaint related to the
possibility of a child becoming locked within a refrigerator and suffocating.

Staff research indicated that there had not been any occurrence of this type of tragedy in
Australia since the seventies at which time industry commenced fitting refrigerators with magnetic
locks. Staff checked all refrigerators presented for collection and none were fitted with locking
devices on the doors.

An incident occurred to one of the contractor’s staff when he attempted to pick up a sheet of
glass, the glass broke and he received a 15cm cut to his wrist above the top of his protective
gloves. It is understood that no permanent damage has occurred to the staff member.


5.   Learnings for Future Programs

1. The Kerbside Bulk Waste Collection information brochure requires refinement in regard to the
   descriptions of the service areas to improve clarity. Future brochures should also include a
   map on the back to clearly define the service areas.

2. Council needs to improve communication with the public throughout the year to ensure that
   they are aware that they can utilise other organisations such as Briteside Industries,
   Salvation Army and other groups to encourage the collection and reuse of serviceable items
   by these organisations.

3. The collection program needs to focus on servicing high profile roads in the first instance in
   order to minimise the detrimental impact on visual amenity.

4. Green waste should be excluded from the collection service as it becomes contaminated and
   is unsuitable for recycling and reuse. Residents need to be encouraged to utilise the green
   waste bin service in order to ensure that the product is collected and remains
   uncontaminated.

5. In regard to the collection of electronic waste, further negotiation needs to be undertaken with
   the waste contractor to arrange for a separate flatbed truck to be utilised for the collection of
   electronic waste, to ensure that this waste can be preserved in a suitable state for recycling
   and does not need to be landfilled.

6. The contractor will review the protective equipment provided to staff involved in picking up the
   kerbside bulk waste material to ensure that employees have adequate protection from
   potential lacerations.

7. Given the significant logistics of undertaking the kerbside pickup, consideration needs to be
   given as to whether the service occurs annually or every two years.

6.   Future Service Improvements

Staff will investigate the costs and alternative methods of collecting problem wastes such as
garden waste, Ewaste, mattresses and tyres in the next Kerbside Bulk Waste Collection Service
during the preparation of the 2015/16 draft waste budget.




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