Waste management

Journalist’s enquiry: I just saw the State Government’s announcement of FOGO three-bin rubbish and recycling from 2025 and we’re hoping to cover local councils’ plan regarding the scheme. Could you give me an overview as to where City of South Perth is at with this, specifically covering the following points:

• Has the City previously made any move towards a three-bin FOGO system for households? If so, feel free to share this background.
• Does the City believe 2025 is the right timeline and achievable for South Perth?
• Will the City make the change earlier?
• Does the City have existing long-term waste contracts that would be compromised by the State Government push for change?
• What advantages does the City believe a three-bin system will bring compared to the current system?
• Do you think residents will prefer three bins over the existing system and its features such as composting rewards through Switch Your Thinking and regular weekly kerb side collection?
• Would those features become redundant under a three-bin system?

Please attribute the following statement to City of South Perth Mayor, Sue Doherty.

Has the City previously made any move towards a three-bin FOGO system for households? If so, feel free to share this background.

The City has not pursued a three-bin FOGO system for households. 

Better Bins, commonly referred to as the three-bin system, is a State Government program which provides funds to local governments to support higher waste recovery, including general waste, co-mingled recycling and organic/green waste. 

To date, the position of the City and its Rivers Regional Council (RRC) partners has been that Better Bins was not the preferred option for waste management for the following reasons:

• despite financial support from the State Government, it presents a significant cost to ratepayers
• it provides increased capacity to generate more household waste at a time when households are being encouraged to reduce household waste
• and the lack of available space for some households, particularly those living in apartments to store an additional bin on their properties.

For many years, the City has instead pursued the possibility of delivering its Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) stream (general household waste including organic waste) to a Waste to Energy (WtE) facility. WtE facilities use thermal processes to break down general waste into a fraction of its original size. This generates baseload renewable energy (such as steam), which can then be used to generate electricity.  

In partnership with the RRC, Phoenix Energy and the Cities of Armadale, Gosnells, Mandurah and Canning, and the Shire of Murray, the City is part of a project to create Australia’s first WtE facility to be located in Kwinana. The WtE facility will help the City significantly reduce its reliance on landfill disposal; making a step change towards achieving its zero waste objective.

Construction of the WtE facility has commenced and the facility is scheduled to open by the end of 2021.

Does the City believe 2025 is the right timeline and achievable for South Perth?

The City plans to work with the State Government and other stakeholders including the RRC to determine if the 2025 timeline is achievable. 

Will the City make the change earlier?

It is not anticipated that the City will transition towards a three bin system earlier than what is outlined in the the State Government’s Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Strategy.

Does the City have existing long-term waste contracts that would be compromised by the State Government push for change?

The WtE project is supported by 20-year waste supply agreements with RRC and the City of Kwinana. The project also has a five-year waste supply agreement with Veolia.

Item 2.3 of the State Government’s Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Strategy Action Plan states:
Plan for three bin FOGO system roll out: In consultation with local government, develop a plan for the phased introduction of three bin FOGO kerbside collection systems in Perth and Peel, including coverage requirements, processing and infrastructure needs, market scoping and development, mechanisms for transition from non-FOGO two and three bin services, and flexibility to allow for contractual transition.

The City understands this as allowing the City the flexibility to consider the three-bin organic separation system after the WtE contractual commitments have been met.

What advantages does the City believe a three-bin system will bring compared to the current system?

As previously mentioned, the City is committed to the WtE project. The advantages of the City’s involvement in the WtE facility include: 

• Landfill avoidance: The City’s goal is to divert almost all of the residential rubbish which cannot be recycled through other means, to the WtE plant.
• Energy recovery: in the form of clean renewable electricity generation. Unlike solar and wind generation, WtE plants are a unique source of continuous renewable energy.
• Recycling: through the recovery of metals from the ash by-product, i.e. the capture of metals which are not recovered by kerbside recycling collection services.
• Reprocessing and reuse: through the proposed conversion of the solid ash by-product of combustion into bricks and pavers and/or used as construction aggregate.

Do you think residents will prefer three bins over the existing system and its features such as composting rewards through Switch Your Thinking and regular weekly kerb side collection?

To date, the City has not surveyed its residents regarding their preference for a two or three bin system however in the future the City may seek feedback from the community.

Would those features become redundant under a three-bin system?

This would depend on how the three bin system was managed.