Leaked council plans reveal free green bins for Brisbane residents, no go for FOGO
A battle of the bins has ensued in an east coast council after leaked plans revealed residents would be getting green bins for free.
Brisbane City Council's plans to announce the move with the budget has been foiled by Labor, which wants credit for the idea.
The council, which is controlled by the Liberal Party, earlier hinted at a bin-related announcement, which is now understood to be the roll out of free green bins for garden waste, but not food, across Brisbane.
Labor, the LNP and the Greens are now all claiming credit for the idea, according to the ABC.
Massive stockpiles of green bins are sitting at Nudgee, Rochedale and Willawong council depots, captured on Google Maps imaging – something LNP councillor Sarah Hutton is not denying.
'I can promise you that we will be making sure if people want a green bin, there'll be an option for them to get a green bin,' Ms Hutton said.
'We'll wait and see what the budget has to say.'
She confirmed 'FOGO was a no-go' – referring to a separate bin for food waste.
It is understood only 30 per cent of households have opted in to Brisbane's green bin program, costing $49 a quarter, with Ms Hutton not clarifying whether residents who paid for green bin collections would get their money back.
She said she wouldn't say anything else until June 18 when the budget is released.
Councillor Jared Cassidy believes the credit for the green bins lies with Labor.
The rollout, which will begin next financial year, would have happened sooner if not for the council 'stalling', he said.
'The amount of organic waste going into landfill is the single biggest contributor to Brisbane's carbon footprint, and all we've seen is years of inaction from this LNP council,' Mr Cassidy said.
'Brisbane should be leading Queensland on green waste services, but instead we've been falling behind other councils like Moreton Bay, which rolled out a citywide garden organics program last year.'
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