The Greater Toowoomba Waste Management Facility has added a national excellence award to an earlier innovation gong following a presentation function in Brisbane late last month. The O’Mara Road site was awarded the Transfer Station Excellence award at the Australian Landfill and Transfer Station Conference.
Toowoomba Regional Council (TRC) Water and Waste Committee chair Cr Nancy Sommerfield said the award was confirmation of Council’s vision for creating an innovative, sustainable and flexible strategy for managing waste across the region. “Council previously has been recognised as one of the most innovative local governments in Australia in waste management and now our work has been further commended for transfer station excellence across the country,” Cr Sommerfield said. “The $20 million Greater Toowoomba Waste Management Facility design was based on detailed research and analysis of long-term operational costs. The innovative design has been adopted as a template for similar new facilities across the country,” Cr Sommerfield said. “The facility has reduced the number of loads to landfill by 79 per cent, with a future target of 90 per cent.”
Water and Waste portfolio leader Cr Bill Cahill said from an operational aspect, Council was able to manage the O’Mara Road facility more efficiently. “Council built the facility as a blueprint for a regional network of automated facilities, with operations able to be managed from the O’Mara Road facility,” Cr Cahill said. “New technology helps staff monitor and track waste streams at each location and different times of the year. This can identify potential issues, such as the delivery of hot coals in the cooler months.”
The March honour adds to the Innovation Award which the complex received at the 2017 Australian Landfill and Transfer Stations Innovation and Excellence Awards in Sydney. These awards recognise the best that landfills and transfer stations have to offer, with the aim of applauding sites that are exceptional and encouraging best practice in operations.
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