Tip fees bewildering

When taking an old washing machine to the tip, John Byrne was told he would be charged for dumping the metal machine.

John believes the change in practice from the tip contractors will have a big impact on his business.

“With the tip not just taking scrap metal and wanting to charge for it instead, those added costs will affect my business,” John said.

“It is something I will have to charge my clients for and will ultimately cost the public extra.

“The tip were happy to take scrap metal when they were getting $500 per tonne for it.

“Now that it is only worth $50 per tonne, they do not want a bar of it.

“Our usual practice is to use an excavator and then sort through the waste materials.

“We would pick out the scrap metal and separate it from the other materials.

“But, that is not feasible anymore.”

John was at a loss to explain the change in policy and believes it is going to hurt the pocket of his clients.

“If the tip is not going to take scrap metal, it would make no sense to sort through the materials.

“It will just be adding even higher charges to the consumer,” John added.

“It is not my business who will pay for it, it is my clients.

“If the tip is going to charge for recyclable items, it is only going to encourage illegal dumping and increased landfill.

“Isn’t the logo on the rubbish trucks ‘It’s only rubbish if it is not recycled’?”

Director of Building and Environmental Services for Hilltops Council, Craig Filmer, said nothing has changed at the tip.

“Whitegoods have been charged per unit for years,” Craig said.

“They are not all metal and have a lot of wiring and plastic inside.

“Scrap metal is still being received for free if it is being sorted.

“If people are willing to go to the trouble of sorting their recyclables, the tip will definitely take them,” he said.