Mr Kneipp said there were a number of misunderstandings and misconceptions about the third bin proposal within the community but said the biggest one related to the decision of the former councillors.

“A lot of people are saying council deferred a decision at its April meeting until a new council was formed but that isn’t the case,” he said.

“The report had two recommendations and both were noted by council, which meant the project would proceed to a tender stage.”

Mr Kneipp said council had started looking at a third bin as early as 1998 but with a $4.1 million grant available to help establish the Dubbo Regional Organic Processing Plant, now was a perfect time to move ahead.

While some people had focused on the estimated increase for the domestic waste charge of $75 dollars, Mr Kneipp said a state government tax or levy on landfill had the potential to push residential charges up by $145 per year if introduced.

If a future federal government introduced a carbon pricing scheme, it could also drive up the waste charges, he said, while building the processing plant and introducing the organics bins would reduce landfill and greenhouse emissions, helping to keep waste charges lower in the future.

Mr Kneipp said the processing plant would generate between $20 and $50 million for the local economy, with councils including Narromine and Mid-Western also considering implementing a third bin and using the Dubbo facility.

Tenders for the project close on April 26 with a recommendation to be presented at a future council meeting.