SOUTH WEST QUEENSLAND
THE KLEINTON WASTE MANAGEMENT FACILITY
Amy Bernier Project Manager Project Services, Infrastructure Services Toowoomba Regional Council
The Kleinton Waste Management Facility functions in a network of waste facilities to service the Toowoomba Region. The $18m project incorporates a new waste transfer station, and it involved the rehabilitation of the existing landfill. The facility is designed for a 25 year life, with an expansion option for 50 years of service. The project has resulted in the optimisation of customer service, a reduction in the amount of waste sent to landfill, and an improvement in the economics of recovering resources. Customers were educated on how to use the facility, but the design was also based on observed customer behaviour. Detailed planning enabled maintenance of customer serviceability on the same land as the construction work, landfill rehabilitation, and minimisation of environmental impacts. Automation and sustainability initiatives have ensured that this facility is designed for the future. Introduction Project planning for the Kleinton Waste Management Facility (WMF) began in 2015. The $18m project incorporates a new waste transfer station, and it involved the rehabilitation of the existing landfill. The facility
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functions in a broader network of waste facilities that are optimally positioned throughout the Toowoomba Region. The configuration of the site was planned to ensure customer ease of use, through the observation of waste facility customer behaviour. There were several design considerations that were unique to the site, such as the need to maintain waste operations on the same land throughout construction. There were also several environmental protection aspects incorporated into the design. The automation and sustainability initiatives implemented on the site are a key differentiation between the Kleinton WMF and other facilities in the industry. Practical completion of the project was staged, with the main facility reaching practical completion in December 2020, and the final practical completion being achieved in April 2021. A site overview plan is shown in Figure 1. Waste management as a network In 2017 a Waste Management Strategy was released to the community of the Toowoomba Region. This strategy describes how Council will build and manage a network of waste facilities. An intent of this strategy is to ensure that 98 percent of the Toowoomba Region can drive to a facility within 20 minutes. Geographical network planning was used to select the optimum locations and sizes for each future site. The Kleinton WMF is one of the key facilities in the network. Project planning for the Kleinton WMF commenced in 2015 and started with considering how this facility would function within a network of waste
management facilities to service the Toowoomba Region. Several locations were considered for the site, however, it was decided that the existing landfill was best situated from a network and community acceptance standpoint. The 16 hectare site will service the Northern parts of the Toowoomba Region for the next 25 years, and can be expanded to offer 50 years of serviceability. The facility configuration Configuration planning was of high importance for the Kleinton WMF design. Several concept designs were considered before the final configuration was agreed upon. These designs evaluated constructability, future waste processing opportunities, and suitability for a range of vehicle configurations. The facility layout has increased waste streaming options, optimised resource and cost recovery, and reduced the amount of waste sent to landfill. The design has improved the economics of recovering resources. The clockwise configuration illustrated in Figure 2 is split into four key areas that have the following purposes: •T he Bulk Materials Area – Segregation of green, timber, crushed concrete, and steel waste. •R esource Recovery Area – Separation of recyclables. •R esidual Waste Transfer – Discard of non-recyclables for compaction prior to landfill diversion. •R etail Tip Shop – Resale of recyclables. Enhancing the customer experience Customer serviceability and safety were important considerations of the design. The Traffic Impact and Engineering
ENGINEERING FOR PUBLIC WORKS | MARCH 2022
