Geelong council reflected the community consensus at this week’s meeting when it resolved to step up its opposition to the proposed Lara waste-to-energy incinerator.
You Yangs councillor Chris Burson introduced the notice of motion, which was seconded by Cr Elise Wilkinson and supported unanimously by the rest of the council group.
The motion proposed that the council reiterate its opposition to the incinerator due to health and pollution concerns, continue to advocate for the immediate abandonment of the project and write to Minister for Planning Sonya Kilkenny to change planning laws so Geelong council would be the decision-maker for future waste-to-energy projects.
Corio councillor Anthony Aitken successfully sought to add a fourth point, that the City develop its own waste-to-energy policy.
Cr Burson said when he became a councillor late last year he was not informed about the issue.
“Since then I’ve been barraged with reports about the incinerator and the distinct lack of support for it,” Cr Burson said.
“I’m yet to see any minister that has been supportive of it. The Energy Minister (Lily D’Ambrosio) seems to be against it… (member for Lara) Ella (George) has been against it, Richard Marles has been against it… so I’m confused as to why it’s still going ahead.
“This is not just a Lara issue, it’s a City of Greater Geelong issue, and I would like to think that anything that’s going to be inside the City would be at least brought past us first.”
In December 2023 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted Prospect Hill International a developer’s license to build the incinerator, which would burn 400,000 tonnes of waste each year.
That decision has since been appealed by a coalition of local businesses and community organisations.
Cr Wilkinson said waste-to-energy incinerators were expensive and inefficient, with 25 tonnes of “toxic ash” produced for every 100 tonnes of waste burnt.
“All waste incinerators emit deadly forever chemicals and toxic pollutants that travel long distances,” Cr Wilkinson said.
“We cannot fix one environmental problem by creating another.
“This is a project with no local support, no business case, and is an environmental disaster waiting to happen.”
