In the first month of the new weekly food and garden bin service, Knox residents have halved the amount of rubbish going to landfill and diverted 1900 tonnes of food scraps and other organics to be turned into compost.
Knox Mayor, Marcia Timmers-Leitch said residents should feel proud of their resilience and ability to adapt to change so well.
“In July, we more than doubled our food and green waste collection, sending 1,900 tonnes of food and garden material for processing into compost for our parks, gardens and farms,” she said.
“As a community, we’ve already saved 2,100 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions by halving the rubbish we sent to landfill.
“Pleasingly, there has been no increase in contamination in recycling or food and garden waste bins and no increase in dumped rubbish or litter in public rubbish bins.
“Even small differences made by households are making a real impact on reducing our waste. While it has taken effort at an individual level, the collective impact is something we can all be proud of.
“We know that the changes to our bin service have been challenging and some particularly-impacted residents have been discussing solutions with Council. We will continue to monitor these impacts and work with the community to help adapt to the changes.
“Remember there are special considerations available for people with two children in nappies or high medical waste needs.
“Keep up the great work for the long-term benefits for our community.”
To learn more about what can and can’t go into the food and garden bin, visit knox.vic.gov.au/FoodAndGarden
