{"id":596971,"date":"2026-04-10T02:26:12","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T02:26:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/596971\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T02:26:12","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T02:26:12","slug":"south-west-locals-say-funding-education-keys-to-fixing-troubled-three-bin-waste-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/596971\/","title":{"rendered":"South West locals say funding, education keys to fixing troubled three-bin waste system"},"content":{"rendered":"

Locals and leaders across Western Australia’s South West say a solution to the region’s growing waste management problem is not “rocket science”, but will require state government funding.<\/p>\n

Pioneered more than a decade ago by the region’s councils, the Food Organics and Garden Organics bin is on the verge of collapse, with multiple local governments questioning its financial viability.<\/p>\n

The system is part of the state government’s waste strategy as a way of reducing rubbish going to landfill.<\/p>\n

But the system has experienced serious trouble in the South West, with efforts at local processing \u2014 a key component in turning the food scraps into profitable commercial use \u2014 collapsing.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

For more than a decade, locals in WA’s South West have been using the three-bin FOGO system. (ABC South West WA: Jacqueline Lynch)<\/p>\n

Short-sighted thinking frustrating<\/p>\n

The end result has been the trucking of tonnes of waste to landfill, much of it piling up close to the home of long-time resident Jill Cross.<\/p>\n

In a bid to preserve the system, the WA government is offering a $95\/tonne subsidy to truck FOGO waste to Perth for processing.<\/p>\n

The Shire of Harvey rejected the offer outright, citing high fuel costs, while the City of Bunbury is investigating whether it’s financially viable.<\/a><\/p>\n

The secretary of the Dardanup Environmental Action Group, Ms Cross says both councils are being short-sighted, and the Cook government needs to step in.<\/p>\n

\"Woman<\/p>\n

Jill Cross says funding for a local processing plant is the long-term solution. (ABC South West: Bridget McArthur)<\/p>\n

“It’s not rocket science,” she said.<\/p>\n

“The government have already said this is part of their strategy, so Minister [Matthew] Swinbourn needs to be stepping up and building a proper processing plant here in the South West.<\/p>\n

“If it happens in Perth, why can’t it happen here?”<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The Dardanup tip sits less than 10km from the town centre and takes waste from Perth and the South West. (ABC South West WA: Jacqueline Lynch)<\/p>\n

She said a lack of education had also played a role, calling for a campaign and incentives along the lines of the ongoing Quit or Containers for Change campaigns.<\/p>\n

That was echoed by members of the ABC South West Breakfast audience, who argued that an unwillingness by residents to properly sort their rubbish was a significant weak point in the FOGO system.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A pile of FOGO waste. (ABC South West WA: Jacqueline Lynch)<\/p>\n

“I don’t put my 10c containers into recycling or waste any more, I keep them and get money back; I know smoking is bad for my health, because I read it on the packets and see ads on TV,” Ms Cross said.<\/p>\n

“We just need more education.”<\/p>\n

Opposition says government must step in<\/p>\n

Opposition Environment spokesman David Bolt agreed more education was needed.<\/p>\n

But he said it could only go so far.<\/p>\n

“All it takes is one or two people, a few percentage points, to destroy a [FOGO] container load,” Mr Bolt said.<\/p>\n

“If someone has a full bin and nowhere else to put their rubbish, you know where it’s going to go.”<\/p>\n

Having served as Murray Shire president prior to entering parliament, he is well aware of the region’s waste challenges.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Liberal MP David Bolt says the Cook government needs to support more local processing in the South West.<\/p>\n

A long-time waste-to-energy advocate, he said burning waste to generate power, while expensive, should be looked at as one part of the long-term solution.<\/p>\n

A pilot waste-to-energy plant opened in Kwinana last year, with a view to consuming 400,000-plus tonnes of waste each year, generating around 38 megawatts of power in the process.<\/p>\n

Mr Bolt said state level intervention was needed, regardless of the solution chosen.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A Cleanaway truck driving through the Dardanup townsite. (
\n ABC News: Kate Stephens
\n )<\/p>\n

“[Waste to energy] is not the only solution, but I think it’s an option we have to have,” Mr Bolt said.<\/p>\n

“The state has the ability to set the standards; if regional funding is needed to support a financially sustainable processing facility, that’s what [the government] should be focused on.”<\/p>\n

In a statement, Environment Minister Matthew Swinbourn said the government’s offer of $4.5 million funding represented an increase in what was previously available.<\/p>\n

“Delivering effective waste services remains a core responsibility of local government,” Mr Swinbourn said.<\/p>\n

“We will continue working constructively with South West councils as they assess their options.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Locals and leaders across Western Australia’s South West say a solution to the region’s growing waste management problem…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":596972,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[64,63,289597,291373,75,289596,291374,289600,289598,3810,128,41844,289599,45,227180,291375],"class_list":{"0":"post-596971","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-bunbury-rubbish","11":"tag-dardanup-rubbish","12":"tag-environment","13":"tag-fogo-bins","14":"tag-fogo-processing","15":"tag-green-waste-wa","16":"tag-harvey-rubbish","17":"tag-recycling","18":"tag-science","19":"tag-south-west-news","20":"tag-three-bins","21":"tag-wa-news","22":"tag-waste-collection","23":"tag-waste-to-energy-wa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/596971","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=596971"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/596971\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/596972"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=596971"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=596971"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=596971"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}