Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
What is some very much breaking news. Darwin residents are
going to have to wait until next year for the
city's annual pre cyclone cleanup. The City of Darwin has
postponed this year's hard rubbish collection until May twenty twenty
seven as it continues restoring services following the massive recovery
effort after Cyclone Feena. Residents can still dispose of eligible
(00:23):
hard waste for free of charge at Sholbay Waste Management
Facility using their access tag. Now, this news is probably
going to surprise a lot of people. For some of you,
you might feel a bit firer. But the Mayor, Peter
Styles joins me in the studio, Good morning to your.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Stylezy morning Katie.
Speaker 1 (00:41):
Now can you explain why this decision was made?
Speaker 2 (00:45):
So, Katie, there's a lot of information was brought before
council and collectively the council made a decision to postpone
it till May next year. Now, we've had a lot
of cleanup as a result of Cyclone Feena. There's a
lot of stuff cleaned up as a result of what
happened in cycling fen. But also we've got the cleanups
(01:05):
that's finished as such, but the restoration work is ongoing now.
The other thing that came to us, and to me
especially was that people want to see some of the
items that have been put out reused and recycled. So Reviver,
for instance, say take mattresses and they clean them and
they resell them to people who are perhaps less fortunate
(01:27):
than some of us. So recycling furniture, recycling mattresses and stuff. However,
if it's put out in the wet season, yeah, it's
all lost, or it goes into a truck and it's destroyed.
So we encourage people to perhaps take those things down
to the tip and give them to Revivers so that
they can be reused and get a second life.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
Mayor I know that locals do, though rely quite heavily
on this each year. What do you say to residents
who do rely on the annual hard rubbish collection to
prepare their properties before the wet season that that's now
not going to happen this year.
Speaker 2 (01:59):
We want is for people if they can to take
their rubbish all year round to the tip. And given
that we're probably to my knowledge, one of the only
municipalities in Australia that has access all year round to
their tip through a tip tag. Now some people say,
well I haven't got a tip tag. If you're a
rent for instance, see your property manager, because every residence
(02:20):
has a tip tag.
Speaker 1 (02:22):
I know that like it. You know, look for some families,
it's really easy to take all that waste to the dump.
You know, we've got a trailer at our place. My
husband will very often go and do those hard waste,
you know, trips to the tip. But not everybody's in
a situation where they've got a trailer. Not everybody's in
a situation where it's quite an easy thing for them
to do. I mean, what would you say to anybody
(02:44):
listening this morning that's sort of going, well, hang on
a seck, I just don't have a trailer. How am
I meant to do this?
Speaker 2 (02:50):
Well, if you like, you can duck down the Bunnings
and they'll give you a trailer for two hours for free.
There are service stations that have got trailers for rented
reasonable prices. Ask people to prepare all year round and
get rid of those excess items, and if you can
recycle them, please do. Because the reviver of asked us
to say to people, if you can actually bring it
(03:11):
down there, they will give it a new life, and
that helps not only the landfill side of it, but
it helps those families that are less fortunate than ourselves,
for instance.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Mayor I know though that some people listening this morning
are going to be thinking to themselves. Counsels and meant
to be responsible for roads, rates and rubbish. How are
we in a situation where you can't fulfill what many
would consider to be a core function? Like is this
a cos cost saving measure?
Speaker 2 (03:33):
No, it's not, Cadie. It's about getting our staff back
out there. Staff of We want to have an enhanced
safety program. If you're handling stuff in the wet season
when it's slippery, we do it in the dry. We
can also recycle all those products rather having destroyed by rain,
et cetera when they're sitting on the verge.
Speaker 1 (03:53):
So it is going to return next year May twenty
twenty seven, next year, Is that correct?
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Yes, that's correct, May twenty seven. It will be done now.
If you have mobility limitations or some sort of access barrier,
you can contact the council because we have assisted pickups.
That's open now until I think the thirty first or
the beginning of October September, sorry, and there will be
a six week period where we'll be collecting stuff from
(04:21):
people who have those mobility issues or those accessibility barriers.
So if you like to contact the council, you can
fine them get online, or you can go to the
council chambers and all get assists.
Speaker 1 (04:33):
So that's certainly going to help seniors, those with accessibility issues,
they can get in contact with the council. Starlecy a
few messages coming through people just asking is it going
to go back to normal scheduling pre cyclones season or
remain May each year from next year.
Speaker 2 (04:50):
Well, that's something for council to decide. We'll obviously look
at what happens in May next year, We'll make assessments
and we'll take in a feedback from people and then
there'll be a decision made as to whether it continues
on in that vein.
Speaker 1 (05:04):
So it sounds like it's up in the air really.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
Well, you know, we've got to look at various ways
to do things where we can recycle products, we can
reduce the landfill, but we can still help those who
need insisted, need to help a hand, Mayor, I.
Speaker 1 (05:18):
Mean, can you reassure residents that postponing this cleanup isn't
going to increase cyclone risks across the city.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
Well, given the amount of products that were put out
there that weren't should not have been part of the
cyclone collection program. When you look at building materials, for instance,
you know people who do renovations and put all their
commercial waste out there and expect the rate payers to
take away their commercial race. It's not how it actually works.
(05:46):
If you've got a contractor comes in to do renovations
on your home, it's their responsibility to dispose of what's left,
not put it out in the verge for months and
just leave it for someone else to clean up.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
People are starting to fire up on the tech sign.
I mean Scrubby's just said not every car's got a
tow bar to hitch a trailer. Others asking someone saying
what a load of bes anything to get put out
is to get recycled. Have you never seen people going
through everything? Is the council going to pay for cars
to be fitted with toe bars? Just a council money
(06:18):
saving act? So people are obviously they're going to be
potentially quite annoyed as this information flows through. You've said
it's not a cost saving measure. You've said it's more
about recycling and making sure that people are doing the
right thing. But you know what, if it is what
people expect, there the ones who vote for you.
Speaker 2 (06:37):
So say Katie, the issue here is that we've got
a program like business as usual, programs that have to
happen before the web season. Given that the amount of
resources are attributed to FENA, we've now got to go
out there. Can I give an example weeds? For instance,
We've got to do a program of spraying for weeds.
If we don't the weeds get out of control next year,
(07:01):
we're up for you know, so much extra money to
keep the weeds under control.
Speaker 1 (07:08):
So why why are we in a situation where things
that every year had that had been getting done, like
the weed management, you know, like this, like the cyclone cleanup?
Why does it feel like we're sort of getting less
services or the councils struggling to deliver those services comparatively
to previous years.
Speaker 2 (07:27):
So, Katie, is a ratepayer, do you want to pay
for ninety percent of the clean up costs? Is stuff
that we shouldn't be picking up. It's not they're not missiles,
It's just rubbish that's been put out on the verge
that people don't want to take to the tip themselves. Now,
as a householder, do you want to pay for all
of that? That's the question I asked people when we
(07:49):
were discussing this in council. I was going out talking
and doing some straw polling and saying what do you
want to pay for?
Speaker 1 (07:54):
Well, look, to be honest with you, I wonder whether
there's other efficiencies that can be found within council. Whether
it's more a situation of rather than cutting back people's
services and they you know what council delivers. Are there
different efficiencies that could be found within the council? And
I know that a lot of people might be scratching
their heads going, you know, our services are being cut back,
(08:15):
but councils, you know, building a brand, spank and new building.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
Well, I mean that's that's a different issue. And that's
that's all covered by the parking levees and things like that.
When you're talking about the new civic center, the budget
is not in this year's budget's not impacted by that,
So that's a separate issue. Katie. However, when you look
at people being able to take things to the tip,
all year round. We haven't. It's not a cost cutting exercise.
(08:42):
We're simply just postponed it until May. Now there are
reasons we've done that, because it's easier to collect rubbish
and then recycle it. But what we don't want is
building materials and things like that out on the verge.
So if you've got an assisted.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
There are a lot of that, though, is there a
lot of building materials stuff? Building materials well, building.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
Another other stuff that's not relative to the cycloning cleanup,
So you're paying for stuff that people just shouldn't really
put out there. That should look after the tip themselves. Now,
if you live in a block of units, for instance,
you need to contact your property manager because they've got
all the body corporate, they'll have the tags to get
(09:24):
to the tip. They arrange it. It's the same with
military bases and things like that. They arrange their own.
We look after the rate payers of Darwin.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
I get Look, I understand what you're saying, but I
can also see on the text line people are not
overly happy about, you know, about this announcement that's being made.
I know that if you know, you have outlined the
reasons for it, But can you understand the sentiment of
some you know, sort of questioning why the council is
(09:52):
not able to deliver the services that you always have.
Speaker 2 (09:56):
Well, it's not. We're not going to not do it,
actually postponing it until May next year. That allow us
for enhanced safety for workers. It enables the recycling of products,
giving them a new home, and that's going to assist
those in the community less fortunate than ourselves. And I
just ask people to say, if you don't have a towbar,
(10:17):
find a mate with a ute or get someone to
sip and pick it up.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
So the main reason that this is happening is more
for recycling and to make sure that the appropriate things
are going out to the tip. Well, what's you know,
what's the main reason for it.
Speaker 2 (10:31):
That's part of it, Katie. The other thing is that
we want to actually prevent all the building materials and
things from going out there and just being left on
the side of the road for us to pick up
and for rate payers to pay for.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
And what do you mean when you say you know
that you've also then got the got your other staff
or your subby's et cetera going out and doing the
weed spray and you want to free them up to
do all of those things, because presumably you've already got
my contractors that are in place to do those different roles,
Like presumably they're not the same ones that have been
going out and collecting this waste.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
Katie. We do a lot of this in house, so
those business as usual stuff that should happen prior to
the wet season will be happening so that weed control
all the other things that are in place for that.
But Cyclone Feena took a big toll on our staff,
on our resources, so we've actually delayed a lot of
that stuff. So they're now back out there doing the
business as usual stuff that needs to happen prior to
(11:25):
the wet season.
Speaker 1 (11:26):
Somebody's message through and said, Katie, Fina is not Darwin's
first cyclone. Why is the city of Darwin struggling so
much after Feina?
Speaker 2 (11:35):
Well, I don't know whether we're struggling so much, Katie.
What we've got if we've got planned things that happened
throughout the year. Cyclone Feena was a big cyclone. It
took a big toll on on our workers, on our staffing,
and our resources. So we've got all that done we've recovered,
but we're now in the restoration. There's still work happening
out there to restore the city as it was prior
(11:55):
to Feena. And we do live in a cyclone area,
which is a bit of an issue, but we choose
to live here for good reasons.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
Mayor. Before I let you go, I mean, what is
your final message to anybody listening this morning who's maybe
quite concerned about this change or they're feeling upset about
what you've just announced.
Speaker 2 (12:13):
Well, if people are concerned and they feel that they
need assisted help in some way, contact the council ring
up it's eight nine three hundred three hundred and talk
to the people there. They'll give you some idea where
you can get assisted removal of your hard products, or
(12:34):
get online and have a look at the website, or
drop into the Council chambers. We've got some lovely staff
there that will help you and give you some idea
about what you can and can't do.
Speaker 1 (12:44):
Well, Lord Mayor of Darwin, Peter Stiles, we appreciate you
joining us on the show this morning and talking our
listeners through this. I know not everybody may like this announcement,
but I appreciate the fact that you've fronted up and
you've let us know exactly what's going on. So thank
you very much for your time.
Speaker 2 (12:59):
Thanks Katie. Please most of the people, most of the time,
thank you.
Speaker 1 (13:03):
I can only try. Thanks so much, we appreciate it.