The three bins would be for general household waste, recyclables and green waste.
Environment Minister Albert Jacob said the two-year Better Bins Kerbside Collection Pilot Program would improve Perth’s kerbside recycling rate of 39 per cent in 2012.
‘This will allow householders to easily separate waste to increase recycling rates, reduce landfill and provide a residual waste stream with the potential to be used to fuel future waste-to-energy plants,’ Mr Jacob said.
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READ NOW‘WA local governments currently use a range of different collection systems, but only seven offer a three-bin system. This partly explains why WA kerbside recycling rates are variable, and generally lower, than in the eastern states.’
He said kerbside recycling rates for local governments in South Australia, NSW and Victoria were between 50 and 60 per cent, compared to about 15 to 30 per cent for many Perth councils using the two-bin system.
‘Results from the two-year pilot program will provide important data about whether a broader scale three-bin system could be warranted in WA to contribute to a more efficient and effective kerbside waste management system,’ Mr Jacob said.
He hoped for a household recycling rate of 50 per cent by 2015 in the metropolitan area.
The seven local governments already using the system are Albany, Bayswater, Bunbury, Cambridge, Capel, Cottesloe and Nedlands.