By Victoria Stone-Meadows
City of Casey Councillor Amanda Stapledon has accused the State Government of mishandling funds raised through the Municipal and Industrial Landfill Levy.
Cr Stapledon made the accusation during a matter of urgent business at a council meeting on Tuesday 16 May.
She claimed that her position is supported by the 31 member councils of the Metropolitan Local Government Waste Forum where she is deputy chair.
The 2017/’18 State Budget allocates funds from the levy for Parks Victoria projects including redevelopment of the Parks Victoria website and an updated asset management system.
Funds from the levy are also expected to be used to acquire land for three parks in Melbourne’s growth area and an overhaul of the Environment Protection Act 1970.
Cr Stapledon said these initiatives did not reflect the original intent of the levy and that the government was using the funds for pet programs.
“I was horrified to learn where it’s going,” she said.
“It’s not going into landfill management or toward making landfill more affordable, or education of residents.”
“It is considered that the items outlined in the budget paper for Parks Victoria do not meet the intent of the allocation of this fund.”
According to Section 70 of the Environmental Protection Act 1970 the Municipal and Industrial Landfill Levy is to:
– Foster environmentally sustainable uses of resources and best practices in waste management to advance the social and economic development of Victoria; and/or
– Foster community action or innovation in relation to the reduction of greenhouse gas substance emissions or adaptation or adjustment to climate change in Victoria.
A spokesperson for Minister for Energy, Environment, Climate Change and Urban Development Lily D’Ambrosio said the way funds from the levy were spent was consistent with the levy objectives.
“Changes were made in 2015 to strengthen how the Fund is administered,” the spokesperson said.
“A new Sustainability Fund Priority Statement was released in 2016, setting out our investment priorities in waste management, resource recovery, sustainable use of resources, greenhouse gas reduction, and climate change adaptation.”
“The government also established a new Sustainability Fund Management Committee in 2016 to ensure the Fund best utilises the landfill levy revenue collected for the legislated purposes.”
However, Casey City Council has unanimously passed a motion to write a letter to Minister D’Ambrosio to ask her to wind back the funding allocated to Parks Victoria.
The letter will also include data outlining the amount of money Casey Council has contributed to the Municipal and Industrial Landfill Levy along with other councils in the forum.
