Since launching our food and green waste service two years ago, Bayside’s landfill waste has dropped to the lowest levels on record – but we can still do more.

• food and green waste bins with the light green lids will be emptied weekly
• general waste bins with the dark green lids will be emptied fortnightly

There are no other changes to waste services – recycling and hard waste collections, and the day your bins are emptied, will remain the same. Food will still be collected weekly, just in your food and green waste bin.

Reducing our landfill waste is important as landfills are filling up and the costs, which are passed on directly to ratepayers, are rising sharply, with an increase in the landfill levy confirmed for next year.

The changes to the collection schedule might feel like a big change for some households, especially those who aren’t already using our food and green waste service. There are also special circumstances we need to consider, such as households with large volumes of nappies or medical waste.

That’s why Council conducted a six-week, community-wide engagement process to identify some of the barriers to using the food and green waste service, and which households may be most impacted by the collection frequency changes and how we can help them make the switch.

From 27 May to 11 July 2021, we asked our community to tell us how they are feeling about this change and how Council could support them when the bin collection schedule changes in July 2022.

We heard from 4,203 participants: 3,097 via an online survey, 656 completed a printed survey, 370 individual conversations at place-based pop-up engagement sessions, and 80 direct enquiries.

We’ve summarised the key findings below, or you can read the complete engagement report.

How are you feeling about the switch?

Understandably, not all households feel the same about switching the bin collection schedule. Many people who took the survey view the change as positive or feel it will not be an issue for their household, while a similar number are concerned. In contrast, the majority (88%) of people we spoke to at pop-up engagement sessions (370) are feeling positive about the change.

Of the participants who are concerned about the change, almost half have specific waste needs, such as households with a large 6+ family, children in nappies, or a person living with a disability or chronic medical condition. 12% of those concerned do not currently have a food and green waste bin.

Some concerned residents also told us they are supportive but need more information about how to adapt or manage their waste needs – for example if other bin sizes can be made available.

How do you rate our food and green waste service?

Current users of Council's food and green waste collection service were asked to rate their satisfaction with the food and green waste collection experience between one and five stars, with an option to explain why they assigned that rating. 89% rated the food and green waste service three or more stars.

Are your bins full on collection day?

We wanted to understand how many households have a full bin on a typical collection day in order to anticipate the need for support services, such as larger or additional waste bins, and develop programs to help residents reduce their waste to landfill.

Chart: Percentage of different types of households who said their general waste and/or food and green waste bins were full on a typical collection day. 'Other households' refers to respondents who did not identify with any other particular category, e.g. a large 6+ household.

Who will be most affected by the switch and how do they feel?

Every Bayside household was invited to participate in the consultation and provide feedback. We knew that some households with high-volumes of unavoidable waste or specific waste needs would be most affected by this change, so we wanted to hear from them to understand how we could support them.

We asked these households how they were feeling about the change and if they thought they'd need a larger or additional bin after the switch.

Note: Respondents may have identified their household as having one or more characteristics. Percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number.

How we're supporting households with specific waste needs

We’re proposing to offer free service provisions to support households with specific and unavoidable waste needs to make the switch more equitable. These proposed options, along with eligibility criteria, are subject to the consideration and support of Council at its 26 October 2021 meeting.

We'll be communicating with residents about how to request extra bin space in the lead up to the switch, as well as ways to reduce household waste going to landfill. We're also encouraging households to hold off making a request until after the switch in July 2022 to see if they really need it!

What else are we doing to reduce waste?

Residents have shared concerns about their bins filling up quickly. We understand the change may be a challenging adjustment for some of these households and that’s why we’ll be working with our community in the lead up to prepare you for the change. If you are keen to find out more on how to reduce your waste from Sustainability Victoria to get started.

We also heard from people who want Council to offer more waste avoidance initiatives and services. These are just some of the programs we’re already looking into delivering:

• A feasibility study into a repair/reuse service or centre in Bayside
• A feasibility study into a best-practice reusable nappy program
• A series of reusable nappy workshops
• Improved digital resources such as the A-Z Waste & Recycling Directory
• Tours to our organics processing facility
• The potential for a cleaning liquids refill station

What happens next?

Council will consider a community engagement report and ways we can support households with specific waste needs at its meeting at 6.30pm on 26 October 2021.

• Read the agenda
• Watch the meeting live or view a recording
• Submit a written statement
• Ask a question

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