Media Statements

Queensland Government Waste Levy set to dump on Ipswich ratepayers

23 June 2025

Ipswich ratepayers will be hit by the Queensland Government Waste Levy in Council’s 2025-26 Budget as the State dumps additional costs onto South East Queensland councils.

Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding said the State’s Waste Levy was introduced in 2019 with a promise that no household would be directly impacted but that would no longer be the case in the coming financial year.

“The Queensland Government Waste Levy is required to be paid by Council on behalf of ratepayers for every tonne of waste sent to landfill.

“Councils had previously received a rebate to cover the cost of the State’s Waste Levy. However, the levy is designed to continue increasing while the rebate decreases as a way to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill.

“In 2025-26, the rebate will only cover 70 per cent of the cost of the Queensland Government Waste Levy, meaning councils can no longer shoulder this cost without impacting ratepayers. This is essentially a State bin tax on the residents of Ipswich and many other councils across Queensland.

“Council has been proactive in introducing measures to minimise the cost of the State’s Waste Levy such as our on-demand kerbside collection program, which diverts more than 60 per cent of material from landfill, as well as the introduction of free green bins across Ipswich.

“These new green bins are expected to divert around 15,000 tonnes of green waste from landfill this year alone – saving ratepayers from being slugged an extra $1 million by this bin tax.”

Mayor Harding added that residents will see an increase of $49 as part of the Waste Management Utility Charge on their next rates notice.

“While the Waste Management Utility Charge covers a range of services such as waste collections, resource recovery centres, public bins, waste transport and processing, the Queensland Government Waste Levy is the single biggest component of this price increase.

“Councils continue to advocate for this bin tax to be paused while the State undertakes a review of its waste management strategy, otherwise it will rise year on year while the rebate provided to councils to offset these costs will continue to decrease,” Mayor Harding said.

Ipswich City Council Environment and Sustainability Committee Chairperson Cr Jim Madden said the increase in the Queensland Government Waste Levy made it cheaper for council to deliver a three-bin service than a two-bin service.

“The Queensland Government has provided funding for the rollout of green bins, which we appreciate,” Cr Madden said.

“The additional 15,000 tonnes of waste diverted from landfill, and the predicted million dollars in savings, mean it will be about $10 cheaper per household in 2025-2026 to operate a three-bin system rather than a two-bin system.

“The costs we will incur in things such as more trucks and more services to collect will be more than offset by savings in the levy and disposal fees.

“Ipswich is not alone in taking this approach. The majority of South-East Queensland councils already have, or are introducing this year, a green bin program. This is the way that local councils are going to reduce waste sent to landfill, and the costs associated with that.

“Anything council can do to save what’s paid in the Waste Levy will save ratepayers as well.

“In addition, Ipswich households that were paying $80 annually for having a green bin as an opt-in service will see that charge removed under the citywide three-bin system.”

Cr Madden said the three-bin rollout was in its final phase, with collections to begin from 1 July.

“This has been backed by an information campaign outlining what residents should be putting in their green bins,” Cr Madden said.

“The green bins will be for green waste such as grass clippings, branches, leaves, weeds and dead flowers.

“The green bin should not take anything else, including food organics.

“That’s important, because every tonne of waste we can divert from landfill and into organic disposal will be better both for the environment and save money in the Waste Levy.”

The Ipswich City Council 2025-2026 Annual Plan and Budget will be handed down on 1 July 2025.