With the announcement that glass bins will soon appear on the streets around Moira Shire, the Courier reached out to Moira Shire Council to find answers to a few questions raised by the community.
Here are the council’s responses.
Will purple bins be made available for both residential and rural households?
“Moira Shire Council is delivering close to 14,000 bins to all households with a yellow mixed recycling bin.
“This includes residential and rural households.”
Are the purple bins at any charge to residents?
“There is no charge for the purple glass bins this financial year.
“Fees for the following years will be considered as part of the budget process for 2025-26.”
Will rates for red bins be reduced following the reduction in collection frequency?
“Charges for kerbside services will be reviewed during the 2025-26 budget process.
“By making full use of the new service frequencies and reducing items sent to landfill, residents can help reduce the overall cost to council, which will be factored into future budget considerations.
“The council is required to pay a landfill levy to the state government for every tonne of waste that is disposed of at the Cobram Landfill.
“Currently this amount is $66.30 per tonne and in 2025-26 it is increasing to $84.78.”
“The state government has mandated an 80 per cent diversion rate from landfill and to attain this diversion rate, data from other councils shows that a fortnightly waste/weekly organics service is the most efficient way to achieve this.”
“Council remains committed to implementing programs that divert as much waste as possible from landfill, helping to lower costs for residents and support a more sustainable community.”
App to help
Cassandra Burgess, who works for a court volunteer organisation across the Hume region, said more easily accessible information and community discussion around which items belong in each bin would help residents reduce their waste sent to landfill.
“It is clear that the council are doing this for of the community. But I think they went about it the wrong way, with corporate red tape, instead of grassroots community stuff.”
After downloading the Moira Shire Council Waste Info app, Ms Burgess was able to halve the amount of her waste going to landfill.
“I was at first like, I don’t need a glass bin. But the more I looked into it, and once I got their [Waste Info] app, I actually haven’t filled my landfill weekly.”
The Moira Shire Council’s Waste Info app can be downloaded via Google Play or the App Store.
Find more information on the Waste Info app at www.moira.vic.gov.au/Residents/Environment/The-world-of-waste/Kerbside-collection/Waste-Info-App