Residents in Western Australia are now subject to updated guidelines for their food and garden organics (FOGO) bins, prohibiting certain common household items to enhance the purity of compostable waste. The changes, which took effect on July 10, prevent items such as used tea bags, paper towels, and pizza boxes from being placed in FOGO bins.
A FOGO bin is designated for food scraps and garden waste intended for composting. The updated rules aim to ensure that the waste streams are as pure as possible, a crucial factor for successful recycling and composting processes. "What we've seen through [implementing] FOGO is it's so important that these waste streams are pure in what they're intended to be, otherwise they're contaminated and they can't be used for their intended recycling purpose," said City of Stirling Mayor and WA Local Government Association president Mark Irwin.
These new regulations bring Western Australia in line with other Australian states and territories, including New South Wales, Victoria, and the Australian Capital Territory, where items like pet waste have already been excluded from FOGO bins. Irwin noted that non-compostable materials, including some "compostable" takeaway containers and cups, can contaminate organic waste batches and create issues for processing facilities.
While the changes do not affect collection schedules or bin sizes, councils are now in the process of informing residents about the updated rules through social media and other channels. Some information previously printed on bins may now be outdated, a challenge that local governments are working to manage. "It's certainly a challenge for councils," Irwin acknowledged. "They're seeing a lot of pushback from their communities and they're looking, again, for really strong leadership and sufficient funding."
This move is part of a broader national effort to divert organic waste from landfills. Across Australia, there is increasing pressure on waste and recycling systems, with Greater Sydney, for example, projected to run out of landfill capacity by 2030. Several states have implemented or are planning to expand FOGO services. New South Wales legislation requires all households to have access to a green waste bin by July 2030. Victoria has mandated that councils provide FOGO collections alongside separate glass recycling bins by July 2027, although the rollout of additional bins, such as purple glass recycling bins, has faced some confusion and criticism from residents regarding utility and cost.
Queensland and Tasmania have ongoing limited FOGO rollouts, while the Northern Territory currently has no statewide FOGO service plans. The expansion of FOGO services nationwide underscores the growing importance of effective waste management strategies to address landfill capacity issues and improve recycling outcomes.