New food and plant waste recycling service arrives this week

4 March, 2024

Lithgow’s new food and plant waste recycling bin service has begun, saving the community valuable landfill space, returning resources to productive use and benefitting the environment.

From this week, households with a kerbside bin service can put food and plant waste into their weekly green ‘FOGO’ bins to be recycled into compost, instead of going to waste in landfill.

To date, council’s data shows food and plant waste make up around half the waste being sent to landfill in the red bin. Food and plants cannot decompose properly in landfill because of the lack of oxygen and rot very slowly, releasing methane gas.  Methane is a greenhouse gas with a warming effect 25 times greater than carbon dioxide.

Mayor, Maree Statham, said: “Recycling food and plants, instead of wasting them in landfill, is an important step toward meeting carbon emission and waste reduction targets, while protecting the local environment. Residents have been asking for a green bin and I am please this has occurred. Every bit of food and plant waste that goes into the green bin for recycling instead of being wasted in landfill makes a big difference. Together, we are building a more sustainable future.”

The new green bin service is supported by the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA), through ‘Go FOGO’ grant funding.

For more information on collection days and your waste services visit council’s website https://council.lithgow.com/waste-recycling/