Borough to introduce kerbside food waste collection

Published on 28 March 2022

The Borough of Queenscliffe has announced it will be introducing a new kerbside food waste collection service in a bid to make household waste collection more financially and environmentally sustainable.

Starting in August this year, Council will be asking residents to place food waste in their existing green-lidded bins, where it will be processed into compost instead of going to landfill. Council will also be updating its bin collection frequencies to support the rollout by collecting food and green waste every week, and introducing fortnightly landfill and recycling collection.

Queenscliff Mayor Ross Ebbels said composting food waste had a range of benefits for residents.

“By composting our food and green waste, we’re avoiding expensive landfill taxes and the greenhouse gases emitted from organic matter when it’s buried in a landfill,” Cr Ebbels said. “I’m excited to start processing our food waste in a way that’s better for the budget, better for the planet and better for our community.”

Cr Ebbels noted that a recent bin audit showed almost 40% of the contents of the Borough’s household landfill bins was food waste. Currently, Council sends this food waste to landfill, where the Victorian Government will be taxing it at $125.90 per tonne from 1 July this year. “Every tonne of waste we don’t send to landfill is a tonne of waste we don’t have to pay the Victorian Government’s landfill tax on. With this tax increasing every year, these costs will add up for ratepayers if we don’t manage our waste more sustainably,” Cr Ebbels said. “Composting our food waste will be cheaper for our residents over the long term by avoiding these landfill taxes.”

Households in the Borough will receive information and equipment deliveries in the coming months, including a benchtop kitchen caddy, a larger 240L recycling bin, and information sheets on how to sort waste using the new system. Kerbside collections of food waste are expected to begin in August this year, with households to be notified of their first collection date in the coming months.

The rollout follows years of planning by Council, and was recently included in the Borough’s Climate Emergency Response Plan as an action item. Cr Ebbels said Council was well prepared to support residents through the transition. “We’ll be sending out lots of information and holding interactive presentations to ensure our residents are supported through the transition,” Cr Ebbels said. “I’m looking forward to working with our community in the coming months to make this rollout a success.”

Residents can learn more about the project on Council’s website at queenscliffe.vic.gov.au/bins.