Sustainability - Reports

5.

Ordinary Meeting - 02 March 2016

SUSTAINABILITY

5.1

PROPOSED KERBSIDE ORGANICS SERVICE FOR URBAN

RESIDENTS OF BENDIGO AND MARONG

Document Information
Authors

Bridgette McDougall, Organics Project Officer

Darren Fuzzard, Director Presentation and Assets

Responsible
Director

Darren Fuzzard, Director Presentation and Assets

Summary/Purpose
This report explores options to deliver on Councils commitment in the Waste &
Resource Management Strategy 2014 to stop household organics from going to landfill.
It recommends that Council introduces a fortnightly kerbside organics service for urban
residents in Bendigo and Marong.
Policy Context
Council Plan Reference:
City of Greater Bendigo Council Plan 2013-2017 (2015-2016 Update):
Theme: 1

Leadership and Good Governance

Strategic Objective 1

Council demonstrates leadership in its decisions to meet

future needs and challenges.

Strategic Objective 4

Continuous improvement methods are used to ensure the

standard of service delivery is excellent.

Challenges and
Opportunities

Council has a strategic leadership role in setting priorities

and making decisions that will enhance the wellbeing of our
communities and enable effective planning for the future.

Challenges and
Opportunities

People increasingly want to take an active part in

consultation about each phase of the development of new
Council initiatives, strategies, masterplans and service
reviews.

Theme: 5

Sustainability

Challenges and
Opportunities

Reducing waste to landfill has become a very important

priority because of the increasing costs and environmental
obligations associated with waste disposal.

Strategy 5.5

The level of waste to landfill is reduced and residual waste is

managed responsibly, to deliver the adopted waste
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management targets.
Action 5.5.1

Implement the Waste Management Strategy including

creating a solution to managing kerbside organics.

Strategy Reference (include weblink as applicable):

City of Greater Bendigo Waste & Resource Management Strategy
The development of a solution to stop household organics (food and green) from going to
landfill is a key action in Councils Waste and Resource Management Strategy 20142019.
Background Information
In 2014 the Greater Bendigo City Council adopted its Waste and Resource Management
Strategy (the strategy).
A major initiative of the strategy is the removal of household generated organic material
(both food and green) from the waste stream. In doing so, the strategy recognised that
the Greater Bendigo community was ranked 73 out of 79 Victorian Local Government
Areas for its performance in recycling/reuse of kerbside waste from residents. This
reflected a diversion (from landfill) rate of 26% compared with a Statewide average of
44%.
The strategy identified that approximately 1/3 of the average residential waste bin is
made up of food waste and between 17 and 36 percent (subject to seasonal variation) is
green (garden) waste. Together these were estimated to total between 12,000 and
17,000 tonnes per year of organic material going to landfill.
The strategy identified that, in 2014 dollars, a kerbside solution could be introduced to
remove and recycle organic material in our residential waste bins at an additional cost of
around $70 per household.
Since Councils adoption of the strategy, the State Government has adopted the
Statewide Waste and Resource Recovery Infrastructure Plan 2015-44 (the plan). As its
first goal, the plan states landfills will only be for receiving and treating waste streams
from which all materials that can be viably recovered have been extracted.
The plan continues that within five years material streams.will be diverted from
landfills if it is economically viable and if it can improve community, environment and
public health impacts. The plan further indicates that planning of new landfill airspace
will be based on the volume of residual waste streams remaining after all materials that
can be recovered viably have been extracted.
According to the plan, the major cause of greenhouse gas emissions from the waste
and resource recovery sector arise from the breakdown of putrescible waste (ie.
biodegradable material such as food, green waste and paper) in landfills. When these
materials break down they generate by-products, one of which is methane. Methane gas
is at least 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide and is estimated to account for
around 86% of the total greenhouse gases from the waste sector.
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At Eaglehawk landfill, despite methane gas being extracted and converted to power, an
estimated 24,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent gas was emitted in 2014/15. This
represents more than half of the Citys total reported emissions.
Commencing in December 2014 and concluding in March 2015, Councillors participated
in three workshops facilitated by City of Greater Bendigo staff to explore and analyse
options for a residential kerbside organic collection service.
As part of the workshops, a series of research papers (the papers) were prepared by
staff that identified 27 other Councils in South Australia and New South Wales where a
kerbside organic service (including both food and green waste) had been introduced. In
almost all instances, the organic service was being provided on a fortnightly basis and
the residual waste on a weekly basis. The predominant reasons for doing this being:

Concerns about odour by changing the residual waste from a weekly to a fortnightly
collection; particularly in relation to nappies; and

Making one service change at a time to allow the community the opportunity to first
become comfortable with the new service.

The papers further identified that around 40 percent of the cost of providing a kerbside
service relates to the bins being picked up by the truck. Hence, from an affordability
perspective, it noted that the less frequent the service is, the cheaper it would be for
residents. Specifically, the papers predicted an additional annual cost of around
$35/household if a fortnightly residual waste/fortnightly organic bin service is provided
and around $63/household/year extra if one of those services is undertaken on a weekly
basis and the other fortnightly. These costs are based on an amortised cost of kitchen
caddies and new wheelie bins, bin liners, kerbside collection, transport of material to the
processing plant and processing of material. Due to the diversion and reduction of
waste, it is predicted to save $23 in landfill levy costs if a weekly residual service
remains, or $51 if a fortnightly service is adopted based on a reduction of the landfill levy
and reduced collection costs.
The paper also referenced a trial undertaken in South Australia by 10 Councils which
found that while a fortnightly residual waste service was problematic in some instances
(due to odour), a higher diversion of organic material into the organic bin was achieved.
In consideration of the above, the majority of Councillors indicated a preference to
pursue fortnightly kerbside collection services for residual waste and organic material. In
doing so, Councillors endorsed the development of a large scale trial to test the
appropriateness of such an approach before a decision would be made on the final
service to be implemented.
Councillors also considered the merits of providing kitchen caddies, organic bin
liners/bags, an exemption process, a dedicated project officer and an education package
to support the initiative. All of these initiatives were requested to be included in the trial.
Prior to commencing the trial, it was considered important to verify that a genuine
processor (recycler) of food and green organics existed and that it could cost-effectively
service Greater Bendigo. Consequently, Councillors endorsed an expression of interest

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and tender process for the bulk transport and processing of organic material that led to
Council awarding Contract CT000161 to Biomix in October 2015.
The contract was awarded on the basis of the transport and processing required for the
proposed trial (only). Continuation of the contract thereafter is conditional upon Councils
decision to go to full implementation of the residential kerbside organic service. If the
service proceeds, this contract will be in place for five years.
To establish an appropriate trial area that could readily be implemented an analysis of
the demographic and land/building mix on current waste service routes was undertaken.
A combination of the Thursday morning pickups in the Strathdale/Kennington and White
Hills/East Bendigo/North Bendigo areas were found to best mimic the average mix of the
whole city and resulted in a trial comprising 2,671 households. To assure the best
possible understanding of the community response to such a service, participation in the
trial was made mandatory.
In the lead up to the trial, participating households were provided with a 240L organics
wheelie bin, a kitchen caddy and a roll of 150 compostable caddy liners. Education
material outlining how to use these and an explanation for the trial was also included.
Contact details of the support officer dedicated to assisting participants were provided
and a major media launch was undertaken to promote this.
The trial commenced on 10 September 2015 and remains in place. As at early February
2016, there has been 12 organic collections with over 350 tonnes of organic material
recovered. On a pro-rata basis, this would equate to a predicted recovery of more than
12,000 tonnes from almost 42,000 households.
Although the contamination rate of the organic material collected has varied over the
12 weeks, this rate has consistently remained within acceptable levels for the processor.
The first collection had a contamination rate of 1.36% and contamination peaked at
4.65%. The most common contaminants have included plastic bags, bottles, food
packaging, nappies and clothing.
Commencing on 27 November and closing on 11 December 2015, an extensive survey
was mailed to 2,671 households within the trial area. In all, 1,198 responses were
received and represented an unprecedented response rate of 45%.
Bin audits were conducted on 12 and 19 November 2015 at 50 randomly selected
properties from each of the two service areas in the trial. These audits occurred in
consecutive weeks on first the residual waste bins and then the organics bins.
The survey results and the bin audits have been made available to the public on the City
of Greater Bendigo website at:https://www.bendigo.vic.gov.au/Services/Rubbish_and_Recycling/Organics_collection#.
VsFOSbfou70
All Councillors have been issued with an electronic copy of these results and a hard copy
was placed in the Councillors Room.

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In summary, the survey results indicated that 1,080 (or 92% of) respondents are using
the organics bin. The remaining 96 (or 8% of) respondents indicated that they are not
using the organics bin because they have home composting/worm farm/chickens, use a
private contractor for their garden waste and/or feel that they do not have sufficient waste
to warrant the use of the service.
Other key findings of the survey were:

875 (or 78% of) respondents indicated that the fortnightly collection of the organics
bin suits their households needs. 246 (or 22%) said that it did not.

772 (or 67% of) respondents indicated that the fortnightly collection of the residual
waste bin suits their households needs. 378 (or 33%) said that it did not. Of those
not satisfied by the fortnightly service, 161 referred to concerns about odour;
particularly in relation to nappies and pet waste.

24 (or 2% of) respondents had on average an overfull organics bin.

157 (or 14% of) respondents had on average an overfull residual waste bin.

832 (or 75% of) respondents found the organics system very or extremely easy to
use. 89 (or 8% of) respondents found it slightly or not at all easy to use.

Key findings of the bin audits were:

On average, the organics bin weighed 13.1kg and comprised 81.2% garden
organics, 14.1% food organics and 4.7% residual waste (contaminants)

On average, the residual waste bin weighed 12kg and comprised 79.7% residual
waste, 13.1% food organics and 7.2% garden organics.

Overall, on average, 83% of organic material was being diverted from landfill through
the organics bin.

On average, food waste is being disposed of almost evenly between the organics
and residual waste bins.

The initial 30 question survey of residents was conducted to obtain critical feedback
about the suitability of the fortnightly kerbside organic and residual waste services. The
survey purposely excluded reference to the cost of service at that time. To obtain an
insight from participants about how they judge cost versus level of service (having
experienced almost a full summer), a follow-up survey was conducted from 4 to 12
February 2016. At the time of writing this report, responses to the survey continue to be
received and a media release encouraging further responses by 18 February 2016 was
issued on 12 February 2016.
As at 22 February 2016, 717 responses have been received and the results are:

365 (or 51% of) respondents favour a fortnightly organic and fortnightly residual
waste bin service at an additional cost of $35 per annum.

301 (or 42% of) respondents favour a fortnightly organic and weekly residual waste
bin service at an additional cost of $63 per annum.
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51 (or 7% of) respondents favour a weekly organic and fortnightly residual waste bin
service at an additional cost of $63 per annum.

31 households in the trial area returned the survey and indicated that they do not
support the introduction of any kerbside organic service.

A further bin audit was conducted on 4 and 11 February 2016. Key findings of this audit
were:

Average 10.3kg of organics per household.

25% food organics in organics bin.

Average 11kg material in residual waste bin.

27% food organics in residual waste bin.

A further workshop was held with Councillors on 22 February 2016 to discuss the
feedback from the two questionnaires and the data collected on the trial. At this
workshop, an additional variation to the proposed services was raised being an optional
fortnight collection of the residual waste rather than weekly collection.
Discussion
The trial of a fortnightly organics bin and fortnightly residual waste bin service to almost
2,700 households has been invaluable to testing and determining how a kerbside
organics collection service could best be introduced to Greater Bendigo. In particular:
The need for an exemption process
As previously noted, the trial service was introduced to participants on a mandatory
basis. While feedback obtained from the survey indicates that some households were
upset by this, it is considered that doing so has given the greatest opportunity for Council
to understand the full range of attitudes toward an organics collection service.
During earlier workshops, Councillors expressed a strong view that an exemption
process is required to allow households (within the final service area) to demonstrate that
they do not need the kerbside organics service to sustainably manage their food and
garden organics. This approach is reinforced by Councils commitment in the Waste &
Resource Management Strategy to encourage household level solutions such as worm
farms and composting.
Of the 2,671 households involved in the trial, 16 requested and were granted an
exemption for this reason. In doing so, they created the basis on which a proposed
exemption process could be offered. See Attachment 1.
As has been experienced in the trial, it is critical to make clear to those seeking an
exemption that their household level organics system must genuinely manage all
organics and that it is an ongoing commitment.

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The challenge for Council then becomes to what extent this effort is rewarded financially
through an altered waste services fee.
Based on financial modelling, it is predicted that the gross annual cost of introducing the
kerbside organic service on a fortnightly basis is $86 per household (in 2016 figures).
To ensure that any exemption granted is genuinely achieving diversion of organics from
the kerbside waste stream requires an approval and monitoring process. The work
required to maintain the exemption process would be accommodated in the education
officer role that is recommended for the first two years of the service.
On balance, in recognition of Councils objective in the Waste & Resource Recovery
Strategy to support householdlevel solutions, it is considered that an exemption process
with a fee reduction recognising the avoided direct cost of service nominated above is
the most appropriate approach.
Council also wished to explore the option or need to provide an exemption for multi-unit
developments. I.E. To permit residents in such circumstances to share bins rather than
each have their own. This need or desire was tested in the trial survey and of the 157
respondents living in units or flats, 80 percent indicated that they did not wish to share a
bin. In the comments provided however, it was evident that some participants found
storage of the additional 240L bin a challenge.
On balance, the most appropriate response to multi-unit development situations is
considered to be to provide individual bins with an option to reduce these to 140L in size.
Provision of kitchen caddies and liners to support the service
As indicated to Councillors in earlier working papers, studies conducted internationally
and in Australia suggest that the greatest recovery of organic waste occurs when a
kitchen caddy and compostable bags are provided to residents.
On this basis, two caddy types and liners were trialled. Overall the survey results
indicated that 873 (or 78% of) respondents found the kitchen caddy and liners easy to
use.
Of the 245 (or 22% of) respondents who found the system not easy to use, common
comments regarding the caddy included that it was too big or too small or was unsightly
on the kitchen bench.
The caddy used in the Strathdale/Kennington area was found to be better liked than that
in the White Hills/East Bendigo/North Bendigo area. The Strathdale/Kennington caddy
was also half the cost of the other. It is proposed that the Strathdale/Kennington caddy
would be rolled out in the full scale service.
A larger number of comments relate to the bags provided. Many of these comments
suggest to the authors that more upfront education in how to use the bags effectively and
then ongoing familiarity with them will assist over time. One structural change proposed
is to increase the size of the bags so that they can be tied off effectively and a print will
be added to indicate where and how to open them.

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970 (or 91% of) respondents indicated that they occasionally or never experienced
offensive odour with the use of the caddies in the house. Again, ongoing familiarity with
using the system and larger bags that can be tied off is expected to improve this further.
The survey found that 921 (or 89% of) respondents used four or less compostable bags
per week. Therefore, a roll of 150 compostable bags is likely to meet the needs of most
residents per year. Again to assist in the successful rollout of the service, it is
considered beneficial to provide each household with a roll of compostable bags and to
make further rolls available on an as-needed basis throughout the year. Further, during
the initial years of the new service at least, it is proposed that an annual allocation of
bags to households occurs.
The Role of Education and Compliance Activities
Large scale behaviour change processes (such as stopping organic material going from
our homes into landfill) is an immense task that takes considerable time and effort to
achieve. The kerbside recycling service implemented by Council decades ago provides
a highly relevant and strong example of this. Despite years of recycling promotion
through many avenues, the Bendigo community continues to discard between 9 and 12
percent of traditional recyclables in our household waste bins.
During early Councillor workshops, the need for and value of an education plan was
discussed in detail and the attached communication and education plan which utilises a
variety of media and communication mechanisms was developed. Refer Attachment 2.
As part of the trial, many of the activities nominated in the plan were implemented and
tested. 770 (or 65% of) survey respondents indicated that they were aware the trial was
taking place before their bin arrived. 660 (or 74% of) respondents indicated that they
learnt this from the introductory letter sent to their home and 314 (or 35% of)
respondents saw it advertised in the newspaper.
797 (or 68% of) respondents found the educational material provided with the bin very or
extremely informative. 99 (or 8.5% of) respondents found it either slightly or not at all
informative. In a separate question 1,056 (or 91% of) respondents indicated that they did
not find any part of the educational material confusing.
While overall the communication and education material offered appears to have been
well received and effective, comments provided will enable this to be further improved as
part of the broader rollout. Results of the bin audits also suggest that ongoing
investment in education about the purpose of each bin and the importance of using these
correctly will be needed.
Survey responses also suggest that the following improvements to information provided
could be made:

A magnetised collection calendar.

A sticker listing what can go in the organics bin be placed on top of the kitchen
caddy.

Advice regarding how to obtain a new roll of caddy liners.

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Better guidance on where animal droppings and cat litter go.

Clarify which cardboard can go in the organics bin and which should go in the
recycling bin.

Clarify which bin old clothing and material should be placed in.

Greater assurance that items such as bones and fruit seeds are acceptable to put in
the organics bin.

An update on the communication plan and education material in consideration of the

feedback and experience during the trial will be provided to Council as part of rolling out
the broader service.
While positive and long lasting behaviour change is recognised by leading authors such
as Daniel Goleman to be most effectively influenced by adopting a positive and
constructive approach, it is also acknowledged that in some instances stronger
measures are needed.
On 1 October 2014, Council adopted its updated approach to compliance and
enforcement. See Attachment 3.
This policy supports the three step approach of educate, inform and then enforce if
necessary.
Consistency with the adopted approach in regard to the organics initiative is considered
appropriate.
Frequency of service and cost
Based on feedback in the first survey of participants about the service standard offered in
the trial, three options appeared to warrant further participant feedback:
1. A fortnightly organic and fortnightly residual waste service at an annual additional
cost per household (in 2016 dollars) of $35.
2. A weekly residual waste service and fortnightly organic service at an annual
additional cost per household (in 2016 dollars) of $63.
3. A weekly organic service and fortnightly residual waste service at an annual
additional cost per household (in 2016 dollars) of $63.
As at 22 February, 2016 feedback from the second survey conducted in February
indicated that, when offered the opportunity to consider both level of service and
associated price together, 42% of respondents would prefer the residual waste service to
remain weekly compared with 33% in the initial survey (where only level of service was
considered).

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Each option offers different benefits and creates different challenges for people in
different circumstances in our community. The challenge for Council is determining
which option best meets the majority of community needs while giving fair consideration
to the ability of all households to pay. At the same time the evidence shows that
leadership is needed if we are to improve our collective environmental performance and
to reduce the long term cost of our household waste.
A further and critical consideration must be the need to ensure that the option chosen will
engender a strong and enduring positive commitment from the vast majority of the
community toward our ultimate objectives. To do this, the proposal must be widely seen
as a practical, fair and logical step. Sustainability Victorias short term horizon for
change (nominated in the Statewide Waste & Resource Recovery Infrastructure Plan) of
five years and full realisation of its objectives at 30 years is instructional.
In this regard, while 67% of trial respondents initially indicated that fortnightly residual
waste collections have been meeting their household needs, support for this option
dropped to 51% in the second survey when participants were provided information on the
cost of each service. At full rollout, this could translate to around 20,000 households
being dissatisfied with the service and still be made to pay $35 more than they currently
do.
Again, change management most effectively occurs when a positive attitude toward the
change is created and then builds momentum.
It is considered that, as has been found in many other Local Government areas,
changing the residual waste collection frequency from a weekly to a fortnightly service is
a significant challenge in itself and the second survey has indicated that 50% of residents
are prepared to pay more to retain a weekly service. Hence, introducing a new
fortnightly organic service at the same time creates the potential for considerable
resistance to be developed against both initiatives.
While acknowledging that retaining the current weekly residual waste service (and
adding a fortnightly organics bin) would mean an annual increase of $63 to households,
doing so would ensure that all households continue to have a primary service that meets
their needs while they become positively engaged in removing organic waste from our
landfills.
In addition, by retaining a weekly residual waste bin, the risk of contamination in the
organics bin with residual waste is substantially reduced. In turn this will reduce the risk
of paying higher processing fees due to excess contamination.
That said, it is recognised that the first two options do not create the encouragement to
divert organics from landfill the way that the third option (with a weekly organic service
and fortnightly residual waste service) would. Again however, the third option suffers
from a similar risk of the broad resistance noted for the first option. Added to this, is an
even higher cost than option one which in turn is likely to further elevate the level of
dissatisfaction. The significant lack of support for this option demonstrated by the second
survey of trial participants clearly suggests that this option is not currently appropriate to
pursue in Greater Bendigo.

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Across urban areas of Greater Bendigo, 2,539 businesses currently utilise the weekly
household waste service. These businesses sit outside the CBD service (where
dedicated trucks make it possible to provide an individually catered service at a higher
fee) and therefore any change to the existing weekly service would impact on these
businesses.
On balance, it is therefore considered that retention of the existing weekly kerbside
residual waste service and the addition of a fortnightly organics service, offers the best
overall next step in our collective progress toward minimising the resource that currently
goes to landfill as waste.
Further to this, the suggestion at the 22 February 2016 Councillor workshop to consider
introducing an option to have a fortnightly residual waste service (in lieu of the current
and proposed weekly service) has been assessed and is not recommended.
The maximum saving predicted of moving all 42,000 urban households from a weekly to
fortnightly residual waste collection service is $28 per year per household. However,
when this is done on an optional basis the predicted savings are reduced considerably
due to the systems and processes required to ensure that households only receive the
service that they are paying for. At its simplest this would involve the additional cost of
individual identification of each bins level of paid service and assessment by the waste
truck driver of whether each bin is due to be picked up. In doing so, the efficiency of each
truck is reduced (compared to the current approach where no such assessment is
required).
Further, in such a scenario the need to continue to drive every street every week is not
diminished and, given that 40 percent of the total service cost relates to this activity, the
savings able to be passed on become very small.
It is suggested that the current option to allow households the choice to downsize their
bin is a more suitable approach from an overall service efficiency perspective and hence
offers better value to all ratepayers.
In the February 2016 workshop, Councillors also expressed a strong desire to ensure
that the opportunity to build on this initial step is not hampered by long term contractual
commitments for the collection service. In doing so, Council asked that any proposed
contract for collection of organics allow for a review of the adopted kerbside collection
frequencies within two years of the service being introduced. Accordingly, should Council
adopt the recommendation, the collection service advertised will seek prices to enable an
assessment of costs associated with both a two year and (traditional) 7 year contract
period.
Service Area
During workshop discussions, Councillors expressed a desire to roll out the organics
service to as great a number of households as possible within urban areas. Council
indicated that this should include urban areas in Bendigo and Marong initially, with a
further stage to roll out the service to Heathcote and other small towns. This would
equate to around 40,600 households as part of the initial roll out in 2016/17 and a further
1,500 households in 17/18. A map detailing the proposed limits of the organics service
for the initial rollout is included as Attachment 4.
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Timelines
The time required to implement a new service is dependent upon the service option that
Council determines. However, it is suggested that the key time for the service to be
operational is at the start of the 2016 Spring season. While some options will result in
longer lead times than others, it is predicted that all options can be ready to commence
at the start of Spring.
Risk Analysis
The major risk associated with the introduction of any new service and/or change to an
existing service is its acceptance by the broader community. The trial of fortnightly
kerbside collection services in almost 2,700 households during the hotter months of the
year has provided an immense amount of information to better understand this risk. The
conclusions and recommendations in this report have been strongly influenced by this
information together with research on the experiences of other Councils who have
sought such changes.
Other Implications
As Council is aware, private contractor Greenaway currently provides a fortnightly
kerbside green organics collection service to approximately 2,500 households in Greater
Bendigo.
Introduction of the proposed compulsory (with exemptions) kerbside organics service can
be anticipated to impact on this existing business in two ways. Should Council elect to
introduce a fortnightly/fortnightly combination of collection services, then (as has been
the case in the trial area) this can be accommodated by the Citys existing collection
resources. Households wishing to remain with Greenaway could do so but would be
required to demonstrate through the exemption process that all organic material is being
managed.
Alternatively, should Council retain the existing weekly residual waste collection service
and introduce a fortnightly organics service, the organics collection would be
competitively tendered. This would then create the opportunity for Greenaway and
others to win a contract to service around 40,000 households. Should Greenaway not be
successful in this process, households would again retain the ability to seek an
exemption and remain with Greenaway.
Consultation/Communication
External Consultation:
Community consultation on the organics initiative began with the development of the
Waste and Resource Management Strategy that was adopted in 2014. As the most
significant change initiative in the strategy, it received considerable media attention and
promotion. Extensive consultation occurred in the development of the strategy. This was
overseen by a reference committee chaired by a Councillor and made up predominantly
of community members.

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Following Councils decision to conduct an organics trial, the position of Organics Project
Officer was created.
Four listening posts were held prior to the commencement of the trial at Lake Weeroona,
White Hills shopping precinct, IGA Strath Village and Coles McIvor Highway.
A launch of the trial occurred through all local media outlets and the Citys own
communication mechanisms in August 2015.
Contact details of the Organics Project Officer were provided to all participating
households for enquiries. To date, 191 calls have been received. The Citys customer
service team has also logged 45 requests on behalf of residents from within and outside
of the trial area.
Ongoing media releases and the Citys website are being used to keep the general
public informed of findings during the trial.
The Organics Project Officer gave a presentation to Strathdale Probus Club in August
2015 and to the Rotary Club of Bendigo Sandhurst in December 2015.
An extensive survey of 2,671 participants in the trial areas was mailed out in November
2015. The survey was also available in an online version. A response rate of 45% was
achieved and has significantly contributed to the recommendations of this report.
A kerbside waste audit was undertaken by Wastemin over two weeks in November to
assess the contents of the general waste, recycling and organics bins in the trial areas.
A follow up audit was conducted in February 2016.
A second survey of participants was undertaken in February 2016.
Resource Implications
In line with State Government policy, Greater Bendigo City Council attempts to ensure
that the cost of waste management services are fully funded by the waste-related fees
and charges adopted each year in the budget.

The previously described costs associated with the three options for introducing a
kerbside organic service to the residual waste service represent the net additional annual
charges that would be applied to household waste fees if adopted. The following full
year fees for individual services would apply (as adjusted on a pro-rata basis for timing to
introduce organics service) subject to the service option adopted by Council:

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Service

Frequency

Urban Organics
140L or 240L
Urban Residual
Waste 140L
Urban Residual
Waste 140L
Urban Residual
Waste 240L
Urban Residual
Waste 240L
Rural Residual
Waste 140L
Rural Residual
Waste 240L
Recycling
All Service Areas

Fortnightly

Full Year Gross

Cost (2015/16)
n/a

Full Year Gross

Cost (2016/17)
86

Fortnightly

n/a

91

Weekly

138

119

Fortnightly

n/a

194

Weekly

238

222

Weekly

138

142

Weekly

238

245

64.50

66.50

Fortnightly

Notes:

Urban refers to the areas nominated to receive a mandatory kerbside organics service in this report.

Rural refers to all other areas in Greater Bendigo including smaller townships not nominated in the
Urban areas.

The figures in 2016/17 have been increased by 3 percent to reflect normal price increases due to
wage, plant operating and contractual costs.

Budget Allocation in the Current Financial Year:

The trial is funded from the 2015/16 operating budget at an estimated cost of $65,000. A
capital works budget provision has also been made to purchase the required
infrastructure for full implementation.
External Funding Sources:
A $500,000 grant from Sustainability Victoria has been received for the implementation
of a kerbside organics collection service.
Conclusion
Following adoption of Councils Waste and Resource Management Strategy in 2014,
extensive work has occurred to determine what an appropriate kerbside organic (food
and garden waste) collection service for urban households would be.
Finding a balance between what level of service the community expects and what it is
prepared to pay is challenging. So too, considerable leadership is required to raise our
collective performance on diversion from landfill and to position us well for the strategic
direction of the State Government with respect to managing organic material.

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On balance, the best option to respond to these challenges is considered to be the

introduction of a mandatory fortnightly organic collection service in nominated urban
areas in addition to the existing weekly residual waste collection service.
That said, there is a clear desire of Councillors to consider further steps to remove
organics from the kerbside waste collection through expansion of the organics collection
service to Heathcote and other small towns, along with a further review of the frequency
of kerbside services within two years of the full service being rolled out.
Attachments
1. Kerbside Organics Exemption Policy
2. Compliance Policy
3. Proposed Service Area
RECOMMENDATION
That the Greater Bendigo City Council resolve to:
1. Introduce in 2016/17 a compulsory fortnightly kerbside organic collection service to
all households in urban Bendigo and Marong as generally described in this report
and at a net additional annual cost (in 2016 figures) of $63 to these households.
2. Include an exemption process for those properties where it can be demonstrated that
all organic material is being managed within the property and waive the annual
organic collection fee of $86 (based on full year charge for 2016/17) for such
properties.
3. Support the ongoing funding of activities nominated in the attached communication
and education plan (updated from time to time) including funding for a further two
years (from commencement of the full roll out) the position of Organics Project
Officer.
4. Where necessary, support undertaking compliance activities in accordance with
Councils adopted compliance policy to eliminate organics from the kerbside residual
waste stream.
5. Acknowledge the significant role that the residents in the trial areas have played in
shaping this major initiative for Greater Bendigos waste services.

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KERBSIDE ORGANICS EXEMPTION POLICY

Approval Date:
Review Date:
Author

Bridgette McDougall, Organics Project Officer

Responsible Director:

Darren Fuzzard, Presentation & Assets

1.

PURPOSE

This policy provides a rationale and framework for an equitable, transparent and consistent
approach to exemptions from the Kerbside Organics Collection Service undertaken by the City of
Greater Bendigo ('City'), so the community can be assured that standards are met.

2.

SCOPE

This policy applies to those residents within the City of Greater Bendigo organics collection zone.

3.

INTRODUCTION

Council Vision
Greater Bendigo Working together to be Australias most liveable regional city.
Council Values
Council wants the community to have reason to be proud of the city and will do this through:

Transparency Information about Council decisions is readily available and easily

understood;

City of Greater Bendigo Council Plan 2014-2017:Theme 1: Leadership and Good Governance
Strategic Objectives:
1.
4.

Council demonstrates leadership in its decisions and uses good governance principles to
guide decision-making.
Continuous improvement methods are used to ensure the standard of service delivery is
excellent.

Theme 5: Sustainability

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Strategic Objective:
5.

The level of waste to landfill is reduced and residual waste is managed responsibly, to
deliver the adopted waste management targets.

4.

POLICY

Key Principles
This policy and procedure recognises that whilst the Kerbside Organics Collection Service will be
rolled out as a mandatory service to all residential properties who receive a kerbside collection in
the nominated areas, an exemption process is required to cater for residents who can suitably
manage all organic material on-site.
Kerbside Organics Collection Exemption
An exemption from the kerbside organics collection service may be granted in the following
circumstance:

Residents, from the time of the collection service being implemented and continuing
thereafter, demonstrating that all organic material is effectively managed on the property.

Procedure
The following outlines the process in which an exemption must be made and considered:1.

An application must be made using the appropriate form and attaching supporting
documentation. Note: Applications must be made by the resident or by a person acting on
behalf of the resident, where the resident is unable to make an application for medical
reasons.

2.

The application must be submitted to the City of Greater Bendigo - Waste Services Unit for
consideration.

3.

A City of Greater Bendigo representative will assess the application and make a time to visit
the property to assess onsite the property process for dealing with food organics and garden
organics waste.

4.

Determination of whether an exemption will be granted. This will be based on the applicant
demonstrating that they have current and on-going alternative arrangements for the
treatment of food organics and garden organics waste.

5.

Notification to property owner in writing.

6.

Notification to the Rating & Valuation Services Unit.

Note:- Routine audits of receptacles of exempted properties will be conducted periodically.

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COMPLIANCE POLICY
Approval Date: 1 October 2014
Review Date:

1 October 2017

Author

Caroline Grylls, Coordinator Public Health &

Environment

Responsible Director:

Prue Mansfield, Planning & Development

1. Purpose
This policy provides a rationale and framework for an equitable, transparent and consistent
approach to compliance activities undertaken by the City of Greater Bendigo (City), so the
community can be assured that standards are met.
2. Scope
This policy applies to all employees undertaking compliance activities on behalf of the City of
Greater Bendigo.
3. Introduction
Council Vision
Greater Bendigo Working together to be Australias most liveable regional city.
Council Values
Council wants the community to have reason to be proud of the city and will do this through:
Transparency Information about Council decisions is readily available and easily
understood;
City of Greater Bendigo Council Plan 2013-2017
Theme 1: Leadership and Good Governance - Strategic Objective

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1. Council demonstrates leadership in its decisions and uses good governance

principles to guide decision-making.
Regulation and associated compliance activities play a critical role in maintaining minimum
standards of civic behaviour particularly at the points where the behaviour and actions of
individuals intersects with, and impacts with others and the environment.
To be able to achieve minimum standards of civic behaviour, ensure public health and safety and
provide for the protection of the environment, compliance activities are a legislated and
necessary function of Local Government. Frequently Local Governments are required by
legislation to enforce acts and regulations established by State Government. The Citys own
Local Laws form a minor proportion of the total requirement of assurance and enforcement
activities.
In the absence of policy, compliance activities may be seen to be inconsistent and open to
influence. To satisfy the City of Greater Bendigos regulatory compliance requirements in an
equitable, transparent and consistent way this policy has been developed to assist all employees
involved in compliance activities; and to advise community members of the approach that will be
taken.
The current compliance and enforcement policy was adopted by Council in March 2012. Regular
review of the policy is essential to ensure that it reflects contemporary views and supports the
equitable, transparent and consistent approach to compliance activities that is its purpose.
4.

Policy

Key Principles
All compliance activities undertaken by the City of Greater Bendigo will:
be outcome based rather than punitive; i.e. fix the problem rather than issue a fine;
where appropriate, provide opportunity for timely and appropriate corrective action to be
taken;
The City of Greater Bendigo will act in the following order - inform, educate and provide warnings
before undertaking enforcement.
Compliance Priorities
Compliance activities can be classified as either proactive or reactive.
Proactive Compliance
Proactive compliance activities are usually a consequence of programmed inspections,
scheduled audits or experience.

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Reactive Compliance
Reactive compliance activities are usually a consequence of a complaint raised by a resident,
employee observations, or a Councillor on behalf of a resident.
While the origins of compliance priorities may vary, it is intended that the risk assessment
process will be applied consistently, without regard of the source.
Response
All compliance enforcement activities (i.e. prosecution or a fine) initiated by the City of Greater
Bendigo must be appropriately considered and be based on the key principles.
Only where it can be demonstrated that insufficient or untimely corrective action has been taken
by an offender will the City of Greater Bendigo initiate compliance enforcement activities.
Compliance enforcement activities will generally not be initiated unless:
all other means of achieving compliance have been exhausted;
there is sufficient evidence available to achieve successful prosecution;
legislation, regulation or risk requires enforcement activity be initiated
The City of Greater Bendigo will follow up or monitor the outcome.
Exemptions
A number of exemptions have been provided that allow for the City of Greater Bendigo to initiate
the most serious of compliance enforcement activities immediately. This includes, but is not
limited to:
immediate or likely life threatening situations;
permanent or irreversible damage to the natural or build environment;
immediate risk to public health, safety or wellbeing;
persons where a pattern/repeated instances of behaviour and failure to adequately fix the
problem, has been established;
parking infringements (which has its own policy for appeal and review);
debt collection (which has its own policy for appeal and review).

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