Gavin O’Donovan, Director of AEC Group, recently presented a paper at the 2009 Local Government Accountants’ Association (QLD) conference entitled “Sustainable Waste Practices in Local Government”. The paper focussed on the following issues:

• Long-term financial modeling considerations in the waste sector;
• Best practice charging in waste management;
• Benchmarking of waste management charges; and
• Carbon implications and accounting for local government landfills.

Waste management is becoming an increasingly important area of responsibility for local government, with the Federal Government recently releasing a national policy framework to be jointly implemented by the states and carbon issues also requiring effective consideration. AEC Group has assisted a large number of local governments in formulating waste strategies, as well as in the preparation of long-term financial models and charging structures for their waste businesses.

Gavin’s presentation is available at:
http://www.aecgroupltd.com/publications

In the final slide of the presentation, a prediction is made on the likely (average) total utility charges likely to be incurred within the next decade, outlined in the table below.

Charge	Now	10 years
Electricity	$1,900	$4,000
Water	$600	$1,500
Sewerage	$500	$1,250
Waste Collection Service	$200	$500
TOTAL	$3,200	$7,250

This year’s conference was held in Cairns from Tuesday 17th to Friday 20th November at the Sebel Cairns Hotel, and was based on a theme of “New Challenges, Directions and Opportunities for Local Government”. This year marked 13 years of consecutive sponsorship of the event by AEC Group, and we look forward to continuing our strong association with the local government sector in future years.

In our booth during the conference, we brought back the AEC Nintendo Wii Challenge! We congratulate the following winners of our daily prizes:

Day 1 Baseball Home Run Challenge – Matt Lane, Goondiwindi Regional Council (perfect score of 10 home runs)

Day 1 Ten Pin Bowling Challenge – Anthony Keleher, Bundaberg Regional Council (score of 209)

Day 2 Ten Pin Bowling Challenge – Zoe Belz, Burke Shire Council (score of 192)

Day 2 Tennis Challenge – Mark Holmes, Gladstone Regional Council (score of 45)

The AEC Group Business Strategy & Finance division is an industry leader in the provision of advice to local governments across Australia, and has considerable expertise in the waste management sector. If you require assistance regarding any aspect of your local government operation, please don’t hesitate to contact Gavin O’Donovan, Director and Business Strategy & Finance division manager, on (07) 3831 0577 or gavin@aecgroupltd.com.

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