Community Calls For Byron-Style Organic Waste Service

By Madeleine Gray on July 5, 2016 in Food

For the average householder, it can be difficult to know how to lessen one’s ecological footprint. In August 2015, Byron Shire introduced a ‘Three Bin Collection Service’ as a way in which the busy citizen could easily make a tangible contribution to decreasing the amount of household waste that goes to landfill.

Coogee resident Liana McMorrow recently contacted The Beast having been inspired by the scheme.

“Byron has introduced a weekly organics pick-up service, whereby each household is given a kitchen bench top caddy and compostable caddy liners in which to deposit food and kitchen scraps,” Ms McMorrow said.

“The caddy liners are a green colour so they are not confused with plastic bags. The liners are taken to be composted, and the organic waste that would otherwise go to landfill is diverted back to the soil, to replenish farms and gardens.”

Ms McMorrow believes that a similar initiative is needed in the Eastern Suburbs, and thinks that a joint effort between councils would be most beneficial – a task that will be made much simpler once Woollahra, Randwick and Waverley councils amalgamate.

At present, the organic waste recycling programs in the Eastern Suburbs vary from council to council, and all leave a lot to be desired.

A spokesperson for Waverley Council explained its current organic waste system to The Beast.

“Council continues to provide curbside services for collecting garden organics, which are sent to the Lucas Heights Resource Recovery Park to be processed into mulch and compost,” the spokesperson said.

“Council, in partnership with Woollahra and Randwick Councils, also continues to roll out its Compost Revolution Program, which provides discounted compost bins and worm farms to residents.”

However, unlike Byron Shire, Waverley Council does not at present have a weekly pick-up service for food and kitchen scraps. While the Compost Revolution Program is a step in the right direction, it is essentially a home composting service, which is difficult to maintain for busy residents who don’t want to compost in their spare time or who simply don’t have the space.

Waverley Council was quick to point out that as of mid-2017 its Advanced Waste Treatment facility will have been constructed and from then onwards all waste from red household bins will be processed in a closed system under high heat and pressure, creating a compost/soil conditioner product – in this process, only “minimal residual waste” will go to landfill.

Randwick Council was less forthcoming when it comes to its organic waste plans, though its website does contain a small mention of a ‘Food Scraps Collection Trial’ that has apparently been ongoing since November 2013.

Upon further inquiry, a spokesperson explained that the trial involved the participation of “randomly selected homes… being provided with a kitchen caddy and compostable bin liners to collect their food scraps which were then transferred to a ‘food scraps bin’, which was collected weekly along with the regular collection services”. The trial is “currently continuing across 4,000 households” and Council is considering a “more comprehensive roll-out pending the merger”.

It seems that it’s only a matter of time before Ms McMorrow’s Byron-inspired dream becomes a reality.