Piles of waste at Toowoomba Waste Management Centre - Bedford Street

The Toowoomba Waste Centre Vertical Expansion - Stage 3 and 4 project will extend the life of the Toowoomba Waste Management Centre landfill off Hermitage Road at Cranley.

Vertical expansion includes the construction of a fully lined and engineered landfill cell above previously filled cells. The expansion can be likened to ‘piggy-backing’ on the existing filled waste cells. This style of expansion is the most cost-effective and efficient method to meet our more immediate needs and comply with environmental requirements

The expansion works involve multiple liners within the cell, essentially like a giant bin liner, incorporating a drainage aggregate layer containing the leachate system that is designed to capture any liquid and direct it to leachate tanks. Clay, gravel and rock (for the drainage layer) will be sourced from local quarries for the various earthworks.

In addition, the new cell will have wells and collection pipes installed which will collect the gas produced by the breakdown of organic waste. The gas is collected and used in our innovative project, in conjunction with Queensland firm LGI, to supply up to 50% of the power to run the nearby Wetalla Water Reclamation Facility via a 1,000 kilowatt gas-fired generator.

This third vertical expansion project is part of a progressive, six-stage expansion planned at the site over 20 years on the current landfilling footprint. Work on stage one, which was the first vertical expansion project in Australia, was completed in late 2017. Stage 2 was completed in 2023. Stages 3 and 4 will be delivered together to reduce construction costs and provide longer cell life.

A budget of $5.5 million has been assigned in the 2024/25 financial year.

Start date

 1 July 2024

Targeted completion date

1 February 2026