New FOGO bin ban looms for millions of Aussie households

Aussies who think they're doing the right thing when it comes to disposing their household waste could be in for a rude shock, with millions facing a new ban as one state tries to overhaul and improve its recycling systems. Falsely marketed biodegradable bin liners – also known as caddy liners – are set to be off limits.

Victoria is enacting uniform changes across all 79 council areas, impacting the state's two-and-a-half million households, meaning all residents in non-detached housing will soon have a fourth bin. Years after introducing the green-lidded FOGO bin for food and garden waste, a purple-lidded bin will be added for a standalone glass stream of recycling.

While community consultation about the changes is still underway until Wednesday, some councils have trialled the new system early while others are cautiously waiting to roll it out.

"A lot of councils have had troubles. They’re still waiting to see how the trials in other councils go," Bhavna Middha from the Centre for Urban Research at Melbourne's RMIT University told Yahoo News.

While she has called for some of the changes to go further, and be applied to apartment blocks as well, she is supportive of the government's efforts which will bring the state more in line with overseas peers.

"Most of us are used to two bins for sure, which is quite unusual for the world. To date, we've mostly done mixed recycling, putting cardboard and glass together... A lot of parts of the world do recycling by different streams," she added, pointing to nations like Sweden and Germany which even recycle glass by colour.

During the early stages of the trial, many residents have expressed their displeasure at having to add the fourth bin. "It's difficult because we’re all used to mixed recycling," admits Bhavna. But the more precise system should reduce mistakes which can have a huge impact after your bin gets picked up from the street.

"Even a small mistake leads to a much bigger issue," she said. "Trucks can be contaminated by a single mistake." When food waste ends up in the recycling – also known as wet waste – it can be particularly problematic and is a "big problem", the researcher said.

While Aussies overwhelmingly believe recycling to be important, a recent study found that more than half of recyclable materials ended up in the wrong waste steam, namely landfill.

FOGO bin ban on the horizon amid recycling overhaul

Even those who try to do the right thing will likely soon have to change their ways with an expected ban of so-called compostable liners used for food scraps to be introduced. The liners are used in the small kitchen caddies to keep them clean before being tied off and dropped in the FOGO bin.

But the problem is some of the liners being used are not actually breaking down, despite how they're advertised on the supermarket shelf.

"It is a bit of a source of confusion," admits Bhavna. "But the government is not distinguishing between the actually disposable ones versus the ones that have been manufactured from bioplastics or something like that," she explained. In lieu of a wide-ranging crackdown on product advertising, an outright ban of the liners is on the horizon – a path the UK has already gone down.

"I see all these different categories of biodegradable, oxo-degradable, compostable liners being banned as a good sign – that we have to think about our practices," Bhavna said. "There has to be some sort of phase out ... The government is right that there has been so much contamination in food waste."

While the proposed ban was initially slated for next year, it could be pushed back until 2027 in wake of the consultation process, she said.

Instead, she hopes people will revert to paper liners to keep their caddy bins clean and hygienic.

Purple bin to bring 'value'

While the collection rate can differ between councils, Victoria's Mitchell Shire Council which has been an early adopter is providing weekly pick-up of the FOGO bin, fortnightly collection of general waste and mixed recycling, while the glass bin is picked up monthly.

A backlash to the collection rates among some residents even prompted Victoria's Knox City councillor Darren Pearce to propose a $37-a-year charge to residents to revert to weekly waste collection.

The state is not alone with trying to improve its waste systems, with Sydney residents also registering their complaints about the state of some residents' FOGO bins, prompting one council to return to more frequent collection.

Despite the teething issues, advocates say the changes should be welcomed. Suzanne Toumbourou, CEO of the Australian Council of Recycling told Yahoo last week the purple glass bin will be a valuable addition for the country.

"When you have a cleaner stream of recyclable material, you can create more value out of that, meaning more products can be created from recycled glass like jars and bottles," she said.

The yellow bin will be for cardboard, paper and recyclable plastic.

Those in Victoria can read the proposed recycling changes and have their say here until midnight on August 14.

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