Waste trip dumped

By Rebecca Fraser
PLANS for Casey deputy mayor Rob Wilson to travel to Malta for an international waste management conference did not even make it through the door at this week’s council meeting.
The notice of motion was withdrawn without any explanation on Tuesday night after being put forward by Casey mayor Kevin Bradford.
The motion would have moved that the council approve the attendance of Cr Wilson at the Fifth International Conference on Waste Management and the Environment in June, and an official visit to Casey’s sister city Berwick-upon-Tweed.
Cr Wilson received the invitation to visit Berwick-upon-Tweed from mayor Richard Patterson during his recent visit to Casey.
The motion moved that conference registration, accommodation and transfers be funded from Cr Wilson’s training and conference budget allowance, subject to Cr Wilson funding the costs of return airfare travel to the United Kingdom and Malta.
The latest move was in stark contrast to December, when a motion was put forward that would have seen ratepayers fund Cr Wilson’s attendance and accommodation at the conference.
Seven of 11 Casey councillors rejected the December move, some branding the trip a blatant “junket.”
Cr Bradford said Tuesday’s motion had been removed after a discussion with Cr Wilson and deciding this was the “best thing to do”. He said the fact that the trips involved overseas travel were not the reason behind removing the motion.
Cr Wilson has been vocal in recent times regarding the amount of waste Casey residents create and has urged households to be more mindful of how much rubbish they generate.
He has also warned that a rate rise was inevitable due to increased waste management costs and other factors such as the price of oil and petrol.
At Tuesday’s meeting Cr Wilson successfully moved that officers form a report on council’s future plans for a reduction on its reliance on fossil fuels and use of products that adversely affect the environment, with a view towards forming a 10-year sustainability plan.
The News contacted Cr Wilson about the most recent notice of motion yesterday (Wednesday) but he did not respond by time of print.
In December, Cr Wilson told the council he was passionate and involved in waste management and had put forward issues of nappy recycling, asphalt recycling and green waste in the past. He also said he was pilloried each time he wanted to go on a council trip to learn.