Get ready! Get ready! Food waste is coming to the Mornington Peninsula
Published on 27 April 2021
We know many have waited patiently for this exciting new chapter and it’s finally here! We will start collecting your food scraps from Monday 19 July.
You’ll be able to add all your food waste into the green waste bin, including bread, dairy and meats.
Currently, food waste makes up 45.5 per cent of our rubbish bins. When food and other organic waste is sent to landfill it creates methane, a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide.
From July, your scraps will be turned into commercial grade compost to be used as soil conditioners or fertilisers, enriching our soil and helping to grow food. By keeping food waste out of landfill, we’ll be helping reach our zero-waste target and reduce our impact on climate change too.
This sounds great! How do I sign up?
If you have a green waste bin already you are automatically eligible to participate in the program.
If you live in the urban zone of the Shire, but don’t have a green waste bin yet, you can order one for an annual fee of $135 at mornpen.vic.gov.au/greenwaste.
If you’re renting, speak to your landlord about getting a green waste bin.
I’m worried about mess, how can you help?
Do you need a caddy to collect your scraps in? No problem! We’ll give you a free food waste caddy and biodegradable caddy-liners. Jump online to order yours by 25 June at mornpen.vic.gov.au/foodwaste.
The caddy, liners and an information kit will be delivered from 12 July to your Shire address.
If you do not need a caddy, free liners can be picked up from our Mornington, Rosebud or Hastings customer service centres from 5 July. It is important to dispose of food scraps in these liners only, and not any other compostable or degradable type.
Of course, if you prefer, you can just throw your food scraps directly in the bin without any bin liners at all!
We’ll continue to empty your bin fortnightly.
I still want to know more!
Drop in and speak to our friendly waste team at:
- Mornington Main Street Market on Wednesday 28 April
- Hastings Market on Thursday 29 April.
Or join us online:
- Tuesday 4 May, 12 – 12.45pm
- Wednesday 5 May, 7pm – 7.45pm
- Saturday 8 May, 10.30 – 11.15am.
Register for the online sessions at mornpen.vic.gov.au/foodwaste
I live in an area not eligible for a green waste bin, what can you do for me?
You might be interested to learn more about our rebate on compost bins! Go to mornpen.vic.gov.au/compost
Quote attributable to Mayor Councillor Despi O’Connor:
“I am so excited for this new chapter! Food waste collection is one of the key initiatives to come out of our Beyond Zero Waste Strategy and it will have a huge impact on our local environment by reducing the amount of waste we send to the Rye landfill site.
“The food and green waste collected by councils is turned into valuable mulch and compost used to nourish farms, parks and gardens across Victoria.
“By making sure only the right items are going in the bin you are playing an important part in returning valuable nutrients back to the earth. It is important to keep the wrong items out so they don’t end up on farms and in gardens. Incorrect items such as plastic bags, wire and nappies don’t break down even if they are labelled compostable.”