The Queensland Government has introduced legislation before State Parliament that seeks to remove the State’s waste levy.

 

State Minister for Environment, Andrew Powell, said that the levy was a pointless strain put on the State’s economy at a time when focus was needed to be put on fostering growth.

 

“Earlier this year, in line with our election commitment, we amended the regulation to ensure the levy was $0 from July 1,” Mr Powell said.

 

“Today we have introduced legislation to remove the tax for good.”

 

“While the State cannot control the gate fees of individual disposal sites, by removing this poorly managed waste tax we are doing what we can to help business and local councils lower their costs.”

 

“We have consulted widely on this matter and sought feedback from the Australian Council of Recycling, Local Government Association of Queensland and the Waste Management Association of Australia.

 

Mr Powell said the Waste Reduction and Recycling and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2012 also introduced further measures to reduce green tape and streamline environmental approvals.

 

“Again I stress this is not about lowering environmental standards, it is about streamlining processes and increasing transparency within our regulatory framework,” he said.