Cardinia pushes back on purple bin

Cardinia Shire is one of 35 Victorian councils pushing back against State Government mandates on the purple- lidded glass only bin, which Baw Baw Shire Council rolled out in 2024.

A statewide survey of almost 25,000 Victorians, led by 35 councils, found overwhelming opposition to the proposed glass-only bin, with 83 per cent of respondents against its introduction.

Feedback from Cardina Shire residents reinforced the statewide results and of 300 respondents, 87 per cent opposed the introduction of a glass-only bin.

"Our community has been very clear that they support recycling, but they don't support adding another bin without a clear benefit," Cardinia Shire mayor Brett Owen said.

"Both locally and across Victoria, we're seeing strong opposition to a fourth glass bin, and strong support for expanding the Container Deposit Scheme instead. We need solutions that are practical, affordable and backed by evidence, not ones that add unnecessary cost and complexity for our residents."
Support for expanding the Container Deposit Scheme to include glass wine and spirit bottles is high in Cardinia, with 93 per cent in favour, similar to the statewide support of 91 per cent.
"The state government has previously pointed to a business case on kerbside glass recycling to support its mandate. Councils are asking for this to be released to enable transparent comparison with the independent economic modelling commissioned by councils in 2025," Cr Owen said.
In contrast Baw Baw Shire Council was the first council in Gippsland to introduce the purple-lidded glass-only bin with collection beginning in October 2024.
BBSC community infrastructure director James Robinson said community consultation on the bins was completed during development of council's waste management plan 2021 – 2025.
"The consultation showed 67 per cent of respondents would like a new glass-only kerbside bin. Key reasons were convenience and not being able to transport glass," he said.
Mr Robinson said "...the glass service allows council to divert a much higher portion of glass materials to recycling processors rather than being sent to landfill due to contamination."
Council could not confirm the cost of the rollout to council and to ratepayers "due to contractual commitments and grant funding requirements," but independent modelling showed it would cost a typical council about $4 million to introduce with ongoing operational costs of $27 per household each year.Council also said "transitioning to the four-stream waste and recycling system is a State Government mandatory requirement," yet almost half of all Victorian councils, hearing the strong community opposition and weighing up the significant costs, have joined forces and are calling for a more practical, cost-effective solution, urging the state government to reconsider the July 2027 deadline.