A FOOD and garden waste bin will be added to Bathurst’s weekly collection service from April next year.
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Bathurst Regional Council has approved the addition of the third bin for Bathurst homes to complement the existing general waste and recycling collections.
The third bin, to carry a green lid, is designed for food and garden waste and will be collected weekly.
Council has not yet released details on what impact the change to the garbage collection will have on householders’ annual rates bills.
Mayor Gary Rush said the introduction of the third bin came after an audit of household waste found more than half of the general waste collected each week could be composted.
“The result of previous waste audits has found that more than 60 per cent of waste contained in the general waste, or red lid bins, is organic,” Cr Rush said.
“Offering a weekly food and garden waste collection alongside the weekly general waste collection will help keep organic material out of landfill.
“This is a win for the environment as it diverts large quantities of material out of the waste stream, reduces greenhouse gas emissions and the organic material will be recycled into a valuable compost product.”
Cr Rush said the introduction of the third bin would have no impact on other garbage collections across the city.
He said the weekly red lid [general waste] bin collection would remain, as would the fortnightly yellow lid [recycling] bin collection.
“The introduction of the organics bin will be provided to standalone properties as the new system is put into place,” Cr Rush said.
Cr Rush said council was making the change now as it enters a new contract for recycling and organics waste collection in the city.
“Council wants to provide the most effective, value for money waste collection service it can for residents,” he said.
“The community has previously expressed its support for an additional service for food and garden waste and the timing is now right to move ahead with this.”
More information on the changes to the waste collection service is available in a Frequently Asked Questions document on the Bathurst Regional Council website.
