Editor’s note: This is a community opinion piece submitted by Safety Beach resident Joe Lenzo. Opinion pieces reflect the views of the author and not necessarily those of STPL News. If you would like to be considered for future opinion piece please email contact@stplnews.com.au
Nobody disputes that contamination in recycling and FOGO bins is a problem.
The Mornington Peninsula Shire has previously said contamination costs ratepayers more than $600,000 each year. In its latest bin audit announcement, the Shire said last year’s increased contamination added $1 million to waste fees.
If those figures are correct, then everyone should want to see those costs reduced.
What is open to debate is whether the current approach is tackling the real cause of the problem.
The Shire says bin audits help identify where residents may need more guidance. But before asking why residents are getting it wrong, perhaps the council should also ask whether it has done enough to help them get it right.
Information Exists, But Is It Reaching People?
To be fair, the information is available.
The Shire has online waste guides, recycling information pages and disposal advice covering everything from batteries and soft plastics to textiles and electronic waste.
The problem is not the absence of information. The problem is whether that information is reaching people in a way that changes behaviour.
Most residents are not spending their evenings searching council websites to determine whether a coffee cup belongs in recycling, whether a pizza box can go into FOGO, or where to dispose of an old battery.
They are busy people trying to make practical decisions in their daily lives. Many simply rely on common sense, but recycling rules are often anything but common sense.
Over the years, recycling guidelines have changed. Some items that were once accepted are no longer accepted. Different councils have different rules. Some items look recyclable but are not, while others can be recycled despite appearances.
For many households, the system can be confusing.
If contamination rates remain high despite years of information being available online, then perhaps the issue is not that residents do not care.
Perhaps the message is not reaching people clearly enough, often enough, or in the right places.
Show Residents What Is Going Wrong
Rather than focusing primarily on inspections and enforcement, the Shire should invest more heavily in education and communication.
One of the simplest steps would be to show residents exactly what is causing the problem.
Instead of general statements about contamination, publish the actual items being found in bins. Tell people how many batteries, plastic bags, soft plastics, nappies, textiles and other prohibited items are being discovered.
Show photographs. Provide examples. Make the problem visible.
People are far more likely to change their behaviour when they can clearly see what is going wrong.
At the same time, every communication about contamination should include practical alternatives.
If batteries are frequently found in household bins, explain where they can be taken. If soft plastics are causing problems, tell residents what options are available. If textiles are ending up in recycling bins, provide information about textile recovery programs.
Education works best when it does not simply tell people what not to do, but also explains what they should do instead.
Use Every Available Channel
The Shire should also rethink how it communicates with the community.
Not everyone uses social media. Not everyone regularly visits the council website. Not everyone has reliable internet access.
Yet local newspapers, council publications, printed guides, bin stickers, newsletters and direct household communication can still reach people who may miss online updates.
If contamination is adding major costs to the waste system, surely this issue deserves a sustained communication campaign.
Why not dedicate significant space in Peninsula Wide to waste education? Why not produce a simple guide that residents can keep on the fridge and informative stickers for the bins?
Why not run full-page advertisements in local newspapers showing exactly what belongs in each bin and, just as importantly, what does not?
The cost of better communication would likely be far less than the ongoing cost of contamination.
Better Disposal Options Should Be Part Of The Discussion
There is also a practical side to the discussion that is often overlooked.
Some contamination may occur because residents simply do not know what to do with awkward or bulky items.
While the council provides disposal options through its resource recovery centres, not everyone can easily access those facilities.
That raises the question of whether occasional hard waste collections should be reconsidered, even on a user-pays basis.
Providing convenient disposal options could prevent many unsuitable items from ending up in household bins and along the roads in the first place.
Education Must Come Before Enforcement
Most residents are not trying to undermine recycling efforts. They are trying to do the right thing.
Much of the contamination may be the result of confusion, uncertainty or convenience rather than deliberate disregard for the rules.
That is why education must come before enforcement.
If large numbers of households are making the same mistakes, year after year, then the problem is bigger than individual behaviour.
It suggests the communication between council and community needs to improve.
The Shire says contamination is adding significant costs to the waste system. That alone should justify a major education campaign.
Publish the data. Show the mistakes. Explain the alternatives. Use every available communication channel and make the information impossible to miss.
Because if large numbers of residents are making the same mistakes, and those mistakes are costing ratepayers, that is not simply a resident problem.
It is a communication problem.
Disclosure: AI assisted with the writing of this opinion piece.
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I can’t agree with Joe. There is tonnes of very good information relating to waste that is available to everyone personally that lives, or even visits the shire.
The problem with residents of the Mornington Peninsula is that they just don’t care!
We walk around telling all and sundry about the splendours of our beautiful green peninsula, but can’t be bothered to recycle or compost.
This one is on us, not the Shire.