All kerbside wheelie bins to be replaced

Wellington Shire Council will shortly changeover every household’s kerbside bins, as part of a suite of improvements set to take place to Wellington’s waste collection service over the next few years.

All current kerbside recycling and landfill wheelie bins will be collected and replaced with new black-bodied bins during January and February 2024.

The rollout is only applicable to households that already receive a kerbside waste collection through Council.

New black-bodied bins will be delivered to each residence sometime during January and February. If residents are not home during this time, new bins will be delivered regardless and left on the nature strip.

Once new black-bodied bins are delivered, residents should wheel both of their green-bodied bins out for one last kerbside bin collection.

Once emptied, residents should leave their green-bodied bins on the nature strip to be removed. A contractor will return to collect them within around three business days, allowing extra time in case of unforeseen delays. Residents can then start using their new black-bodied bins.

Wellington Shire Mayor, Cr Ian Bye said the replacement of bins increases the uptake of recycled materials in Council operations and further supports Victoria’s circular economy.

“Black-bodied bins contain up to 80 per cent recycled content, compared with green-bodied bins which only contain up to 30 per cent.

“By choosing black bins, we’re reducing our use of our natural resources. Plus, once our old bins are collected, they will be recycled into new bins – and the circular economy continues. ”Cr Bye said.

The changeover addresses the growing issue that most bins across Wellington Shire are at the end of their lifecycle. The new bins are rebranded and barcoded to each individual property, which will help identify stolen bins and monitor contamination.

The swap also brings all bins under standardised bin lid colours, as required by the Victorian Government’s new household recycling policy. This means all Councils across Victoria will provide a consistent message to residents - red for landfill and yellow for recycling - which improves understanding of what goes into each bin and reduces waste to landfill.

All Wellington Shire branded bins are the property of Council and must be returned. Old, green-bodied bins that are put out for a service collection will not be serviced and will be removed.

Residents with a kerbside bin collection should also note that food organics and garden organics (FOGO) ‘green waste’ wheelie bins are in the pipeline, but due to processing constraints in Gippsland this is taking some time to implement. FOGO is expected 2025, aligning with Victorian Government targets for organics and glass recycling.

For more information, visit wellington.vic.gov.au/wasteischanging or phone Customer Service on 1300 366 244.

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