Bin trial Ipswich: Bellbird Park, Raceview residents furious over controversial FOGO bin trial

The collection of red-top bins will be cut back by the council in a controversial move designed to reduce the amount of waste heading to landfill. Some residents have raised concerns about the build-up of nappies and other smelly rubbish.

Raceview resident Ross Turner said he is positive about the year-long FOGO trial set to start in September, which will involve 1000 households.

Some Ipswich residents are seeing red about the council’s plan to cut the collection of general waste bins from a weekly to a fortnightly service in an effort to reduce the amount of rubbish heading to landfill.

About 1000 households will be involved in the year-long food organics and garden organics (FOGO) trial which is set to start in September.

The houses involved will receive a free 240-litre green-top for food scraps, grass clippings and other organic material which will be collected once a week.

About 1000 households in Ipswich will receive a 240-litre green-top bin as part of the trial, which will be collected weekly.

Residents involved in the trial have raised concerns about rubbish, especially nappies and other medical waste, piling up in their red-top bins while they wait an extra week for collection.

They said they have tried to opt-out but can’t do so.

Dozens of local residents told the Queensland Times they were strongly opposed to what was being brought in.

Supporters say it is a step in the right direction to reduce wastage and they urged neighbours to have an open mind about the trial.

Ipswich City Council adopted a new 10-year waste strategy in July and it plans to introduce the FOGO service city-wide by 2024.

The council intends to revise its collection cycle upon the rollout of the “three core bin system” in 2023-24, which would see the green-lid collected once a week and yellow and red-lid bins both collected once a fortnight for all residents.

The trial will involve 500 homes in Bellbird Park and 500 homes in Raceview.

Raceview resident Rachel Hernandez said she was disappointed to have been selected for the trial “without consent and no opt-out option given”.

Red-top bins will only be collected fortnightly for residents involved in the trial.

“We and many other families will find this a struggle to only have our general waste bin collected once a fortnight,” she said.

“While we can see the intention behind it, practically it is going to be difficult to manage as a family of five with a child in nappies and in general the amount of packaging waste we have each week, even when buying fresh food such as apples.

“Many other families echo our concerns mentioning the hygiene problems this will create such as maggots, flies and rodents.

“It will (cause issues for) people who have medical conditions that create a lot of waste such a stoma bags.”

Ross Turner said he was positive about the trial and had been looking for ways to reduce his environmental footprint for years.

He recently moved to Raceview after living on acreage in Pine Mountain.

“I’ve always been a recycler and probably a bit more than other people,” he said.

“I’ve had worm farms, I’ve had compost heaps. At our last house we had our own sewerage treatment plant so that was used to irrigate gardens.

“It’s not that big an effort.”

Mr Turner, who lives with his two adult children, said his family were lucky to put two rubbish bags a week into their red-top bin but understood his neighbours’ concerns.

He urged them to give it a chance.

Ipswich generated 107,7000 tonnes of rubbish during the 2019-20 financial year. That is set to rise to 175,000 tonnes by 2031.

The city generated 107,700 tonnes of rubbish during the 2019-20 financial year, with just under a quarter of that able to be recycled.

By 2031, the amount of waste thrown out by Ipswich residents annually is expected to be more than 175,000 tonnes.

“It’s not going to take much more effort do it,” Mr Turner said.

“There could be positive benefits for the environment. They’re actually making a product that can be sold instead of going to landfill.”

Fellow Raceview resident Gai Trewinnard-McNeill thought it was a long overdue initiative.

“We have been paying for one of the council’s green waste bins almost since the service was first brought in,” she said.

“It’s a brilliant way to deal with kitchen scraps and garden waste you can’t otherwise dispose of.

“I think a lot of people are hesitant because they see this as the council charging more and providing less which couldn’t be further from the truth.

“They’re forgetting that this is just a trial right now and nothing at all may end up coming from it.

“They’re also forgetting that if they change how they handle the different kinds of waste their households produce that suggested changes to collection frequencies might make very little difference to them.

“This kind of thing only works if people actively get into recycling and a lot of people still just can’t be bothered despite the environment benefits.”

Lockyer Valley Regional Council is the first council in the state to undertake a FOGO trial. Deputy mayor Jason Cook. Photo: Ali Kuchel

Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding said the council was just one of several in Queensland to undertake such a trial.

Nearby Lockyer Valley Regional Council was the first in the state to do so.

Cr Harding said anyone involved in the trial should have already received an information pack in the mail.

For residents who have already have an opt-in green-top bin, the fees will be waived for the next year.

“Council will be supporting trial participants every step of the way,” she said.

“Your views and experiences will be critical to understanding how we may be able to roll out FOGO across the city in future years.

“These green bins will be collected weekly, rather than fortnightly, with general waste (red-top) bins moving to fortnightly. Recycling yellow-top bins will remain on fortnightly collection as well.

“We know that up to 40 per cent of current general waste collection is food waste or branch clippings and is also the material that causes the bad smell in our bins.

“By adding it to garden waste (green-top) bins, and collecting it weekly rather than fortnightly, we can divert a significant volume of smelly waste and turn it into something useful, like compost, and keep it out of general waste landfills where it can cause long-term issues.”

Read more stories by Lachlan McIvor here.