Countdown to bin collection changes

Published on 13 March 2024

It’s less than one month before changes commence to kerbside bin collections for township residents in Hepburn Shire.

Under the changes, a new weekly food and garden organics kerbside collection will be introduced for townships, with general rubbish/landfill collection moving to fortnightly. Collection of mixed recycling will remain fortnightly.

The new organics bins and kitchen caddies will be delivered in the next two weeks, in readiness for collection service starting from 8 April.

The changes are part of the state government’s Recycling Victoria legislation, which requires all local governments to implement an organics service by 2030.

“The weekly organics collection will help to divert thousands of tonnes of material from landfill, including food scraps and leftovers, meat, bones, dairy products, garden clippings, leaves and weeds,” said Mayor, Cr Brian Hood.

“Rather than ending up in landfill, these items will be treated as a valuable resource and converted locally to high-quality compost at the Creswick Transfer Station. The compost will be used to improve soil for local farms, parks and gardens,” he said.

“One of the unique differences in our organics collection system is that it is bagless. Even compostable or biodegradable bags can't be used in the organics collection as they can hide contaminants and they don’t break down fast enough. They are very hard to remove as they have to be collected by hand.”

“We realise this is a significant change for our community. Disposal of waste is becoming more and more expensive. Making better use of food scraps and garden clippings means less waste that ends up in landfill, reduced landfill fees and transport costs and significantly better outcomes for the environment,” he said.

There will be no direct cost to residents and ratepayers for the service until 1 July 2024.

Cr Hood said a thorough education program had been underway this year to keep residents informed about the changes.

“We have posted an information pack to every township household and ratepayer. We’ve run ads in local newspapers, television and newsletters, held pop up sessions and shared information online. More information will also come out when the bins are delivered to 4,600 households in coming weeks,” he said.

Cr Hood said that careful separation of items will make a major difference for households unsure about how to reduce the amount of waste they send to landfill.

“Our 2023 bin audit showed on average more than half the contents of landfill/general rubbish bins (red lidded bin) were materials that will be able to go into the organics bin, and around 12% were items that should have been in the mixed recycling bin,” he said.

“While additional bins are available for a fee, we encourage households to do what they can to separate their waste and reduce the amount of materials sent to landfill.”

The introduction of an organics collection is a key action of Council’s Sustainable Hepburn Strategy, which was informed by input from 400 residents. Around 950 households in Clunes have successfully trialled a weekly organics collection since 2021, diverting around 350 tonnes of organic waste from landfill annually.

Township residents who have not received their new organics bin and caddy by Tuesday 2 April are encouraged to phone Council on (03) 5348 2306 to organise delivery.

Find out more about the changes at www.hepburn.vic.gov.au/organics