Cooma's Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) program of residential green waste bins saw one of its worst weeks for contamination on record this month, with 15 tonnes of contaminated FOGO sent to landfill.
Due to the actions of a small minority of FOGO households, this one week will see 28,500kg of CO2 equivalent released into the atmosphere as the green waste breaks down in landfill. This is the same amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere by an average household's electricity use over 6.97 years.
As it decomposes in landfill, green waste releases methane into the atmosphere, an extremely potent greenhouse gas. Disposing of this single week of contaminated green waste has cost ratepayers $1200.
Council's waste team are unable to hand pick contaminants from FOGO, as biohazardous, medical, and sharp materials are often found among the contaminants.
Council has been stepping up its compliance efforts in recent weeks, with educational information provided to households who put the wrong thing in their FOGO bins. Everyone makes mistakes, not everyone knows what the FOGO bin is about, and almost everyone wants to do the right thing with their bins – given the chance.
These educational efforts – stickers on bin lids, explaining what can and what can't go in your FOGO bin – are designed to give everyone the opportunity and the knowledge they need to do the right thing.
Council's Education Engagement Officer has been out at schools and holding pop-up stalls across Cooma to further boost understanding in the community.
Repeat offenders will be detected, warned, and will eventually have their FOGO service suspended. Council-owned FOGO bins may potentially be removed if disposal habits do not change.
Snowy Monaro Regional Council is calling on everyone in the Cooma community to do the right thing with their FOGO bin. Remember: if it grows, it goes in your FOGO.
