Port Stephens Council is inviting feedback on future household waste services as it prepares to introduce a new collection service for 33,000 households.
The council will introduce a new Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) service from July 2027 in partnership with the City of Newcastle.
It has opened an online survey to help decide how frequently it will run bin collection.
The change comes as NSW rolls out a strict statewide requirement for all councils to provide households with a FOGO service to help halve the amount of food waste sent to landfill by 2030.
Under the system food scraps will be collected in the existing green lid bin with garden organics instead of the general waste (red lid) bin.
While the weekly FOGO (green lid) bin is locked in, Port Stephens Council is deciding on the future collection schedule for red bins.
Bin sizes will not change, and the recycling (yellow lid) bin cycle remains the same.
Port Stephens mayor Leah Anderson said she is incredibly excited about the environmental and community benefits this change will bring, noting that community feedback will directly guide the final bin schedule.
"Moving food waste into the green lid bin stops it from creating harmful greenhouse gases in landfill and reduces how much waste is dumped," she said.
"This simple change will give our community the tools to recycle tonnes of organic waste into rich compost every year.
"If everyone across the state hits this target, NSW could divert almost 950,000 tonnes of FOGO waste each year from landfill to circular-economy products.
"This is the equivalent weight of nearly 24,000 humpback whales migrating past our coast
Mayor Anderson said getting the bin schedule right keeps streets clean, hygienic, and running smoothly.
"While a weekly FOGO bin is locked in, councillors will use the survey data and financial analysis to decide between a weekly or fortnightly general waste (red lid) bin cycle at the September Council Meeting," she said.
"Your household waste habits will help us get this crucial decision right for our community."
