The development application for the block bordering Gilmore and Kealman Roads revealed the scope of proposed $3 million 24 hour a day facility.

It also shed light on the time it took from when the proponents, Suez Environmental (formerly SITA), addressed Queanbeyan City Council - five months before neighbouring residents were informed by letter.

Nearby residents, of which there are 1300 households within 500 metres of the facility, are concerned about odour, litter and noise which could emanate from the site, and are furious they were not notified earlier. They are concerned by the number of truck movements set to take place, 84 per day in the initial stages.

The proposed Queanbeyan Resource Recovery Facility and Waste Transfer Station would accept up to 70,000 tonnes of general waste per year and 12,000 tonnes of paper, cardboard and plastics recyclables. It would also accept other wastes such as liquid waste and grease trap waste.

Peter and Wendy Ellis live about 500 metres from the proposed facility and paid for a copy of the environmental impact statement for the proposal.

Mr Ellis said the fact the developer had to do a study of the sort was cause for concern.

"It is in the opinion of the consent authority that the conditions are likely to significantly affect the amenity of the neighbourhood," Mr Ellis said after reading the documents.

He said he was concerned about the siting of the facility so close to residential homes.

Nearby homeowners Andrew and Sarah Lieschke are also questioning the location of the facility.

"I am not against a facility like this as I understand that there is growing demand for this type of service," Mr Lieschke said.

"However, the facility would be no more than a few hundred meters from people's houses, right at the entrance from Canberra to Queanbeyan. Surely there is enough land around to at least put this facility a bit further away from people's houses and the city."

Mr Lieschke said according to the FAQ sheet from Suez, there would be no smell or paper blowing around, and limited storage on site.

"I find this very hard to believe. For one, the recycling facility on the Monaro past Hume always has litter around and it does smell, that's because leftover milk and orange juice and other things just in recycling...smell.

"[This] is not a small facility, what happens if they are unable to transfer it due to unforeseen reasons? Food scraps also smell - while they will not be held at the facility for very long does not mean that have not been sitting in a bin somewhere else for a week and then taken there."

Councillors Jamie Cregan and Trudy Taylor both said they would fight the development proposal, for which approval is granted by the Joint Regional Planning Panel.

"I do not believe that is the correct location for a recycling facility," Cr Cregan said.

"We see what sort of mess it makes in Hume, and in face the ACT government saw fit to locate a recycling facility well away from housing, and well away from other commercial businesses.

"I think we will see on windy days the potential for a large amount of waste to be scattered across areas, and I think there is potential for it to be unsightly... and quite smelly on certain days.

"I certainly do not support it. It is closer to residential houses than Tralee will be to Hume ... and that was a hotly debated topic," Cr Cregan said.

Cr Taylor said allowing the facility would be a backflip on the hard work of the council to improve the entrances to Queanbeyan.

"This will undermine all that effort and money in one foul swoop," she said.

"But more importantly this facility, if built, will be surrounded by people's homes... It will affect their amenity.

"Waste management facilities are a necessity. However, I think we need to be really selective about where we place them. Surely there has to be a more appropriate location than one surrounded by residential and light industrial development."

Suez Corporate Affairs Manager Luke Schepen said the site is within an industrial area which is designed to cater for heavy vehicles.

He said the location was chosen because it offers central access to the western NSW and ACT area and noise and odour impacts are anticipated to be minimal.