Caddies rolled out for organics
Kitchen caddies will be delivered to households across Baw Baw Shire from this week, ahead of the new Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) program beginning this July.
The kitchen caddies will come with a roll of certified compostable liners and will be used to collect food scraps and leftovers, which can then be emptied into existing green bins, alongside garden clippings.
The list of what residents can place in their kitchen caddy and green FOGO bin is extensive, and ranges from food scraps to raw and cooked bones, eggshells, leftovers, bakery items, dairy products, coffee grounds and much more.
Kitchen caddies alsowill come with a brochure explaining how the FOGO program works.
The FOGO program is being introduced because the State Government is standardising household recycling across Victoria, and all councils are required to provide access to a FOGO service, in the move towards a circular economy and better waste management outcomes.
Bin collection days will not change, however from July 6, when FOGO starts, green bins will be collected weekly, and red general rubbish bins will be moved to fortnightly collection, due to the reduced landfill waste.
Food and garden organics placed in the green bin will be processed by Pinegro Products in Morwell, transforming the material into valuable compost and soil conditioner to support the natural environment.
Mayor Kate Wilson said it would be great to see FOGO rolled out, like in many other municipalities already, adding the long-term benefits of the new system were essential.
"Currently, Victorian households send approximately 1.4 million tonnes of material to landfill each year, the introduction of the standardised waste service across the state will ultimately reduce this figure and improve recycling outcomes," she said.
"This amount of waste going to landfill is completely unsustainable and it's important that all levels of government work together to find solutions before these problems become unmanageable.
"I understand this could feel like a big change for some in our community, and some households may feel more impacted initially, but we all have a role to play in reducing the waste our shire is producing.
"Households can request an additional red general rubbish bin, subject to an extra cost, if excess waste becomes an issue."
Council also provides an environmental rebate for compost bins and worm farms, which will be updated and renamed to the 'Reduce, Reuse and Recycle rebate', prior to the introduction of FOGO. The rebate will soon be extended to include reusable sanitary and incontinence products, and reusable nappies and nursing products.
