Waste levy will cost builder $30,000

Bob Jakeman paid $160 to go to the Mount Isa refuse tip yesterday.

That's a trip that would usually cost him $20.

Mr Jakeman, owner/manager of Jakeman Constructions, is one of the first Mount Isa business owners to be hit by the State Government's new waste levy.

The levy is a requirement set down by the government to regulate waste processing and fund a variety of waste management programs.

This means producers of commercial and industrial waste will be slugged an extra $35 per tonne minimum above the normal gate fee at the city's tip.

It will cost businesses and construction companies between $35 a tonne and $150 a tonne, on top of the tip fee, to dump waste at the tip.

The fee could rise after Mount Isa City Council includes its component rate - costs for maintenance and operation - due to the imposition of the waste levy.

Mr Jakeman, owner/manager of Jakeman Constructions, said he often went to the tip three to four times a day.

This means, if Mr Jakeman takes waste to the tip four times a week, he could be about $30,000 a year out of pocket.

While the levy does not apply to domestic kerbside collected waste, the costs the levy will have on commercial businesses will be passed on to residents.