Protection of the Environment Legislation Amendment (FOGO Recycling) Bill 2024

I am very pleased to speak to the Protection of the Environment Legislation Amendment (FOGO Recycling) Bill 2024, which will hopefully see the introduction of FOGO throughout New South Wales. I am proud to report that residents of Lake Macquarie were relatively early adopters of FOGO. Lake Macquarie covers the entirety of the State electorate of Lake Macquarie, a large part of the electorate of Swansea and Charlestown, and a significant part of Wallsend and Cessnock. Residents have been doing this since mid-2018. Since then, over 243 tonnes of organic waste has been diverted from landfill and received a second life as high-quality compost. The amount of landfill waste per capita has also been significantly reduced.

I see the introduction of FOGO recycling across New South Wales as an intelligent and inevitable step to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill. It addresses the urgent lack of landfill space available and promotes a circular economy. It is a little bit back to the future, as it is what our grandparents might have done—my grandparents, anyway. I am not sure about others, but my grandparents, great-grandparents and generations before them did not have this question. We have created a modern problem, and we have to own up to that. It is not just about producing a process for dealing with food and garden organics; it is about reducing the amount of waste we produce by not over-purchasing, and making sure that food is well utilised and well distributed. It is not just about dealing with our waste; it is about having an equitable society when so many of us have too much and too many have too little. It is a whole-of-life issue for food and how we deal with it. Right now, too much organic material is being wasted, and I really do support the bill.

The bill will not have the same impact on Lake Macquarie City Council residents as it will on other local councils that do not yet have FOGO recycling services in place. However, the impact of the bill on local councils and our ratepayers deserves attention. To the credit of members who have contributed the debate tonight, I believe that is going to be duly paid. First, New South Wales councils generally do a very good job at delivering waste services to our communities. They all have different needs depending on their population density, geography and their built form. There are many reasons why there will not be parity between the ability of councils to deliver these sorts of services. But they can certainly a do lot better, I believe, than those who are not delivering FOGO or a similar service.

The household mandate in the bill will require councils without FOGO recycling to deliver another waste service. That will come at a cost. It seems inevitable to me that ratepayers will bear some cost burden associated with the rollout of the additional service, but the Government must do what it can to support councils to minimise the cost linked to complying with the bill. If not, councils will suffer, which means ratepayers will suffer, and many are already suffering due to high rates and pressure for increased rates. Second, the bill includes financial penalties for noncompliance with the household mandate. As a former councillor and former Mayor of Lake Macquarie, I cannot say that I support the hefty maximum penalties included in the bill.

I have had many discussions over the years with the NSW Environment Protection Authority about the way it has engaged with waste proposals. Penalties are a blunt tool for compliance. I would prefer to see a greater emphasis on collaboration between councils and the State Government embedded in the bill rather than a punitive approach. I firmly believe councils should not be punished where they are using their best endeavours to comply with the mandate. However, I acknowledge that the penalties operate as a compliance mechanism and that there is a penalty notice regime, which means a smaller fine would typically apply for breaches of the mandate.

I also take comfort in the strong words of the Minister that the compliance mechanisms in the bill will never be the Government's first step and that councils will not be held responsible for issues that occur in other parts of the sector. If adopted, the amendment proposed by the member for Wakehurst will be another source of comfort for councils concerned by the requirements and potential impacts of this bill. An implementation advisory panel with local government representation will create an opportunity for consultation on regulations and ongoing input about the implementation and operation of the mandate. It is important for local government to have that seat at the table as the party responsible for delivering FOGO recycling services. I thank the member for Wakehurst for his efforts to ensure the views of local councils are properly heard.

Third, I highlight a concern raised by the local government sector, including Lake Macquarie City Council. In simple terms, we do not have the existing infrastructure to recycle the FOGO waste mandated for collection from houses and businesses. This bill will prompt the development of FOGO material handling and processing facilities. It is important to ensure that the development can be achieved in an appropriate time frame so that it does not end up in landfill. I call on the Government to support councils and industry to develop the capacity as a priority. It is clear that there is a strong desire to process FOGO as well as other types of waste, such as soft plastics, in the move to a circular economy. We all want to get the FOGO piece right. To do so, the Government must work in partnership with councils to ensure that the rollout and expansion of FOGO recycling services are as seamless as possible. I commend the Government for taking decisive action to tackle the State's waste crisis and I look forward to further waste reform as we move towards a circular economy. I commend the bill to the House.