Victoria’s next government must act now to keep waste services reliable, affordable and ready for the future, the Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association of Australia (WMRR) says ahead of the 28 November 2026 state election.
WMRR is calling for coordinated planning to ensure that Victoria gets the facilities it needs, when they are needed, so that waste can be collected, transported, recycled and safely managed.
“Waste services are essential services that are part of a broader value chain. A collection truck is only useful if there is somewhere for the material to go, infrastructure that can manage it safely and if recovered materials have a market,” WMRR Chief Executive Officer Gayle Sloan said.
“Without sufficient processing and disposal infrastructure, waste must travel further, costs increase and those costs ultimately land on community and businesses.”
WMRR has written to Victorian MPs and Premier Caroll, seeking six (6) commitments from the next government, including a funded infrastructure plan, coordinated regulation and approvals, stronger markets for recycled materials, expanded producer responsibility and predictable landfill levy settings.
“Government must make decisions based on how the whole waste and resource recovery system across Victoria works. Making decisions about specific infrastructure, policy and collection services in isolation from each other just results in shifting costs and risks to councils, local industry and, ultimately, ratepayers,” Ms Sloan said.
Melbourne’s south-east faces a particularly urgent challenge. The Victorian Recycling Infrastructure Plan (VRIP) Annual Progress Report 2024–25 projects that Hallam Road Landfill will reach capacity by 2030 and identifies the proposed Maryvale energy-from-waste facility as the strategic response to accept residual waste material. It also warns of a shortfall if transfer infrastructure is not delivered in time.
“This Victorian government has known about Victoria’s infrastructure challenge for years. Every delay increases the risk of longer transport distances, higher operating costs and disrupted services. Councils cannot simply absorb those costs — they will flow through to households and businesses,” Ms Sloan said.
WMRR also challenged the proposed blanket two (2) kilometre buffer for waste-to-energy facilities, warning that additional planning restrictions could further delay essential infrastructure without addressing where the residual waste will go.
“Moving the goalposts does not make residual waste disappear. Blocking or delaying facilities without a credible alternative simply shifts the problems – and the bill – into councils, ratepayers and our industry, whilst frustrating investment into Victoria’s waste and resource recovery sector,” said Ms Sloan.
WMRR is also calling for at least half of Victoria’s landfill levy revenue to be reinvested through a published, multi-year programme for infrastructure, market development, hazardous waste management and regional capability.
“The Victorian government collects waste levies, which it currently sits on. This must be reinvested back into Victoria in the infrastructure and services needed to keep the system functioning,” Ms Sloan said.
Other WMRR priorities include expanding the Container Deposit Scheme to wine and spirits; abandoning the mandatory separate glass; setting measurable recycled-content requirements in government procurement; and accelerating producer responsibility for batteries and other priority products.
“Councils and industry should not carry the full cost of managing products they did not design or place on the market,” Ms Sloan said.
“Producers must fund safe collection and recovery. That eases pressure on council and business budgets and ratepayers—and rewards better product design.”
Victoria’s waste and resource recovery sector contributes $3.72 billion annually to the state economy and employs more than 12,300 people. Maintaining reliable and affordable services requires investment across recycling, organics, transfer infrastructure and safe residual waste management.
“Prevention, reuse and recycling must come first, but Victoria also needs a safe, reliable solution for waste that cannot be recovered,” said Ms Sloan.
“The incoming government needs to plan and invest now in necessary waste and resource recovery infrastructure and policy. That means planning the whole system, addressing the infrastructure gap in the south-east, and protecting all ratepayers from having the costs of government inaction passed down the line.”