The Hadfield and Brunswick/Brunswick West trial areas were chosen because they represent the Merri-bek community, while still meeting operational requirements for the trial.

Factors in choosing trial areas included the size of trial areas, collection routes, types of households and dwellings, and the community’s demographics.

Taking part in the trial is not optional. All households and non-residential properties with a Council waste service in the trial area will have their rubbish bin collected every 2 weeks.

We’re here to help though. Explore the household personas on our Participant Hub or contact us for more information on how we can support you through the change.

The purpose of the trial is to test fortnightly rubbish collections in separate areas in the north and south of Merri-bek.

The results of the trial will help us design the best way to introduce fortnightly rubbish collections to the rest of Merri-bek.

The trial starts on 1 July 2025.

Your first rubbish collection as part of the trial will be in the second week of July – the week commencing 7 July 2025 – on your usual collection day.

There will be no rubbish collection in the first week of July.

We will review the trial after 3 months. Fortnightly rubbish collections will continue in trial areas until Council decides on how fortnightly collections will be rolled out for the wider Merri-bek community.

A Council decision on the future of fortnightly rubbish collections in Merri-bek is expected in December 2025.

3,000 properties are taking part in the trial across the 2 trial areas. These are mostly households, but also include some businesses, sports clubs and other venues in the trial areas that use Council’s waste service.

The waste charge, paid by the ratepayer, will still be calculated based on the size of your rubbish bin. Smaller bins have a lower waste charge, larger bins have a higher waste charge.

Properties in the trial areas will have a lower rubbish bin waste charge than those outside of the trial areas.

The standard waste charge applies to standard sized bins. The standard rubbish bin size for trial households will change from an 80-litre bin to a 120-litre bin.

The waste charge is calculated as part of the annual budget cycle, with draft fees and charges considered as a part of the draft budget at the April Council meeting. The fees and charges document will be available on Conversations Merri-bek from 16 April–16 May for public consultation.

There will be no changes to your collection day. Your bins will continue to be collected on the same day each week as they currently are.

To help support the change in collection frequency, the new standard size rubbish bin will increase from an 80-litre to a 120-litre bin. With food waste out of the rubbish bin, a 120-litre bin should be enough space for most households.

Trial households will be able to choose to keep their smaller 80-litre rubbish bin, or get a larger or additional bin if they need it. Different waste charges apply for different size bins.

The rubbish bin sizes available in the trial areas will be:

• 80 litres
• 120 litres (new standard size)
• 240 litres
• 360 litres (a 240 litre bin and a 120 litre bin)

We will collect feedback from participants throughout the trial including through surveys, interviews and pop-up stalls in the trial areas.

You can also provide feedback via email wasteprojects@merri-bek.vic.gov.au

You will receive information in your mailbox at key times throughout the trial.

You can also opt-in to get regular email updates or text reminders on your mobile phone. Click here to sign up for updates.

We currently collect food and garden organics (FOGO) and rubbish bins every week. This has increased the amount of waste our community is diverting from landfill from 48% to 53%. In other words, just over half of household waste collected in Merri-bek’s kerbside bins is now recycled or composted instead of sent to landfill.

But there’s more we can do!

More than 20 Victorian councils now collect rubbish bins every 2 weeks. Councils with established fortnightly rubbish collections are seeing up to 75% of household waste recycled or composted instead of sent to landfill. This is what we’re trying to achieve in Merri-bek.

The experience of other councils shows that making the switch to fortnightly rubbish collections encourages residents to put more food waste in their FOGO bin (which is collected weekly) instead of their rubbish bin. This is the last step to get even more food waste out of the red bin and into the green bin, where it can be turned into compost to help grow the food we eat.

There are many benefits to having fortnightly rubbish collections:

• Reduces food waste sent to landfill
• Creates more compost, a valuable resource that improves soil quality on farms and gardens across Victoria
• Saves ratepayers money over the long-term by reducing collection and landfill costs
• Reduces greenhouse gas emissions that are created when food waste breaks down in landfill
• One less bin on the street each week
• Aligns with our goals of towards zero carbon and towards zero waste to landfill by 2030.

It costs more to send food waste to landfill than it does to turn it into compost. The more food waste our community puts in food and garden organics (FOGO) bins instead of rubbish bins, the less ratepayers will pay.

It also costs more to collect bins every week instead of every 2 weeks. We are only 1 of 3 Victorian councils (Melbourne and Yarra are the other 2) that currently collect both FOGO and rubbish bins every week.

25 Victorian councils already collect rubbish bins every 2 weeks. These are:

Victorian metropolitan councils:

• Banyule
• Bayside
• Boroondara
• Glen Eira
• Knox
• Manningham
• Monash
• Nillumbik
• Yarra Ranges

Victorian regional councils:

• Alpine Shire
• Bass Coast
• Benalla
• Bendigo
• Golden Plains
• Horsham
• Indigo
• Macedon
• Mildura
• Queenscliffe
• Shepparton
• Strathbogie
• Surf Coast
• Wangaratta
• Warrnambool
• Wodonga

Families with 4 or more dependents (children or older relatives) are eligible for a larger rubbish bin at no extra cost. Click here to find out if you’re eligible and how to apply.

If your household is not eligible or you find you still don’t have enough space in your rubbish bin, you might consider paying to get a larger or second bin. Visit our page for Large families to find out more.

Families with 2 or more children under the age of 4 years who are in nappies are eligible for a larger rubbish bin at no extra cost. Click here to find out if you’re eligible or how to apply.

If your household is not eligible or you find you still don’t have enough space in your rubbish bin, you might consider paying to get a larger or second bin while you have children in nappies. Alternatively, you might like to give cloth nappies a go to save space in your rubbish bin. Visit our page for Families with nappies to find out more.

Unfortunately, nappies smell. But we’ve been looking at the experience of other households at councils that already have fortnightly rubbish collections.

We’ve found that councils already with fortnightly rubbish collections have reported households had no ongoing issues with nappies once the service change was established. Encouragingly, despite initial concerns, rubbish bins with disposable nappies were found to be no smellier when collected every 2 weeks.

Households in these council areas have been following these tips to help manage nappies in the rubbish bin:

• Firmly wrap nappies before placing in the rubbish bin
• Where possible, flush solids from the nappy (yes, we mean poo!) down the toilet
• Store your rubbish bin in the shade and out of direct sunlight
• Make sure your rubbish bin lid closes properly and there are no cracks in the bin sides.

Visit our page for Families with nappies to find out more.

We understand that medical waste is unavoidable. People living with a medical condition or disability that generates extra waste are eligible for a larger rubbish bin at no extra cost. Click here to find out if you’re eligible or how to apply

We will work directly with you or your Owners Corporation to get the right bin set-up for your building or development. We'll review the waste needs at your property and we can help by:

• adjusting the size and number of bins you have
• rearranging bin storage areas so that bins are accessible
• adding educational signage so that it is clear what goes in each bin

If you have your own individual rubbish bin, we can work with you to transition to shared rubbish bins and reduce your waste charge at the same time.

We will contact your building’s representative separately to arrange a site visit between December 2024 and February 2025.

More information: conversations.merri-bek.vic.gov.au/shared-bins

Unfortunately, bins smell. But experience of other households at councils that already have fortnightly rubbish collections have found that rubbish bins are no smellier when collected every 2 weeks.

Households in these council areas have been following these tips to help manage smell from their rubbish bins:

• Firmly bag or wrap pet poo and pet litter before placing in the rubbish bin
• Try using an odour-controlling cat litter
• Store your rubbish bin in the shade and out of direct sunlight
• Make sure your rubbish bin lid closes properly and there are no cracks in the bin sides

We’re asking all residents, including those that rent their home, to select the bin size that meets the needs of their household.

However, as changes to your bin size affect the waste charge paid at your home, we will notify your landlord if there is a change to the size of your rubbish bin. Landlords will be advised that it is important that households have the bin size that meets their needs to prevent other issues such as overflowing bins, litter and contamination in other bins.

We have invited all residents, including those that rent their home, to select the bin size for the trial. Residents and tenants are in the best position to make a decision about the bin size that best meets the needs of their household. It is important that households have the bin size that meets their needs to prevent other issues such as overflowing bins, litter and contamination in other bins.

As changes to the bin size affect the waste charge paid at your property, we will let you know if there is a change to the size of your rubbish bin before the trial begins.

We will be contacting landlords by post in February and May 2025 with more information.

Businesses in the trial area that pay the waste charge and access our standard service may find that fortnightly rubbish collections do not meet their needs.

Businesses are entitled to up to 360 litres of rubbish bin space (higher waste charge applies) to help with the change to fortnightly rubbish collections.

If you find the trial service doesn’t meet the needs of your business, you may choose to pay for more bins through our Commercial Plus fee-for-service or choose to use a private waste contractor.