Currently our kerbside waste services are inefficient with many items not sorted correctly, costing ratepayers money as currently considerable household waste material is being dumped in landfill that could be recycled. This also significantly adds to our community’s carbon footprint. As such we are looking to alter the collection frequency, however we can’t tell you what the new schedule will be yet because we need your input.

We are currently seeking community feedback on the configuration of the four bins, and what you think will work best for your community. Council has developed three different collection options, each with different cost and waste diversion implications.

The consistent aspect of all three options is the delivery of a new 120lt purple-lidded bin for glass to all households with or eligible for a kerbside recycling service, which will be collected monthly. The collection frequency of the kerbside landfill bin will be reduced to fortnightly with the increased recycling options available to residents.

Glass, when mixed with other recyclable materials, often shatters and contaminates valuable, easy-to recycle materials such as paper, plastic and cardboard. This reduces these materials quality and ability to be recycled, which lands them in landfill. By separating glass effectively, more materials from the recycling bin can also be recycled. It also ensures all glass is recycled, including glass shards.

Currently our kerbside waste services are inefficient with many items not sorted correctly, costing ratepayers money as currently considerable household waste material is being dumped in landfill that could be recycled.

This also significantly adds to our community’s carbon footprint.

Australia’s National Waste Policy Action Plan has a target of recycling and reusing 80% of the country’s waste by 2030. Victoria’s Circular Economy Action 2021 has set the same target of diverting 80% of waste from landfill by 2030 with an interim target of 72% by 2025.

The introduction of a glass bin will assist Moira Shire Council in reaching both State and National government targets, but more needs to be done.

Currently, 55% of Moira Shire Council’s kerbside waste is recycled. Over 1 million bins are emptied annually in Moira with nearly 11,000 tonnes of materials managed.

By introducing a kerbside glass service to the current kerbside services, we estimate an increase in waste recovery of around 3%, taking our kerbside diversion rate to 58%.

This leaves us a long way from the target of 80%. To reach national and state targets, three options for a kerbside transition are being considered, including the introduction of a kerbside glass service.

Every year in Victoria, $6 billion dollars is lost with food waste ending up in landfill. This does not need to be the case.

Food and garden organics are a useful product that can be turned into compost, growing food for our future. Rotting organic waste in landfill releases methane into the air and contributes greatly to climate change.

A fortnight of food and garden organic waste in a kerbside bin can lead to unpleasant odours, especially over the summer months. Research has shown that a more frequent collection of food and garden organics is a driver in encouraging change to reduce food waste in landfill bins.

A 2021 kerbside waste audit indicated, 51% of waste in Moira Landfill bins was food and garden waste.

Currently Moira Shire is landfilling over 3,000,000kg/per year of recyclable or compostable materials. Through better sorting of waste we can better manage the financial and environmental costs of our actions.

Transitioning to a more frequent food and garden organic collection has been demonstrated to be a driver in encouraging behavioural change to reduce food waste in landfill bins.

With national and state government targets of diverting 80% waste from landfill by 2030, we need to increase our diversion rate by 25% in the next 6 years.

Recent kerbside bin audits have shown that Moira residents have the potential to recover over 60% of items found in landfill bins. The potentially recoverable materials, in the kerbside landfill bin, include textiles, soft plastics, electronic waste and hazardous materials such as batteries. 51% was organic materials.

A neighbouring council changed the frequency of their household landfill collection from weekly to fortnightly in 2015 in response to a new organic kerbside service (weekly). This change resulted in a waste diversion rate above 70%.

Council understands the proposed move of the Landfill Red Lid bin from weekly to fortnightly would be a big change to some households. However including a weekly Landfill Bin moving forward and keeping our services as Business as Usual but with an added Glass Bin will highly impact Council and Ratepayers economically and environmentally. Research collected from councils that have already introduced the fourth purple bin indicates if we were to remain the same, we will not meet the state or national targets, and recovery rates will grow by only 3%

No, it's a Victorian Government requirement that all households have access to a separate glass recycling service.

All households that currently have a Council provided landfill and recycling bin will receive a glass recycling bin.

Council is obliged to provide waste services, everyone must contribute to the cost of providing the trucks, bins and maintaining regular collections, even if they don't generate much waste.

Under the Circular Economy Act 2021, Council must provide the services to resident, these services must be provided inline with the Local Government Act 1982 and 2020.

Council is proposing to introduce a 120 litre Purple Glass Bin. This is the same size as the current Landfill Red Lid Bin.

However the consultation will help us determine if this is the right size for residents. Council will be considering how and if alternative bin sizes would be suitable to the community and whether multiple residences, unit complexes or similar may share a bin.

Currently, requests for a larger bin will only be available to households with special considerations, such as medical reasons.

However, Council will be considering how and if alternative bin sizes would be suitable to the community and your feedback on this matter is appreciated.

In the meantime we encourage all of our residents during this consultation phase to consider what items they are putting into their landfill bin and if they can make conscious decisions to change their waste behaviour.

Analysis of what is going into each bin shows that 61% of what is going into our landfill bins can be composted or recycled.

Unfortunately, all bins can smell, particularly ones containing food waste, this is why food scraps should be going into the Green Organics Bin to be composted and not left to rot in landfills.

There are some simple measures you can take to minimise odour in your bin.

• Store your bin in the shade out of direct sunlight if possible.
• Use an odour neutralising product such as bicarbonate soda in your bin.
• Seal any unwanted items such as nappies in a tight plastic bag before placing in the bin. Food waste going into the Green Organic Bin should be wrapped in the supplied purple compost bags from Council.

A community nappy trial carried out by Lake Macquarie City Council found that the smell of a general waste bin containing nappies was no worse after two weeks than it was after one week.

We understand that families who use nappies, or rely on absorbent hygiene products may find the standard service does not provide enough space each fortnight.

Under these circumstances, families may be eligible to request a larger Landfill Red Bin.

Thank you for composting at home, keep up the good work!

Consider the Green Organics bin as an extension of the good work you are already doing and a means to take the pressure off your home compost or worm farm.

The Green Organics bin can take the hard to compost items and things the worms don't like to eat like citrus, meat, bones, fish, dairy, bread, pasta, cooked food, pizza boxes, paper and dog waste.