Multi-unit dwelling food waste collection and processing pilots
The Queensland Government is investing up to $4 million in funding over three years working with the Council of Mayors South East Queensland (CoMSEQ), to deliver multiple food waste collection and processing trials in different types of multi-unit dwellings (MUDs) including residential and short-stay accommodation.
Queensland’s growing population is driving the demand for more medium and high-density housing developments, such as apartments and townhouses. These building types present a challenge for diverting food waste from landfill with space challenges and building design limitations.
The program will provide targeted research into:
- food waste separation behaviours and contamination across different facility management arrangements and short-term visitors, owner-occupiers, and renters
- building design and facilities management arrangements impacting collection and processing
- the effectiveness of processing onsite, including ongoing management and high energy use
- challenges of collecting and transporting in high density development areas at scale
- impacts of using liners on diversion rates and contamination
- the effectiveness of scaling offsite processing.
Four Councils across South East Queensland are working together to deliver practical solutions to help residents and holiday makers in MUDs keep more food waste out of landfill.
The six pilots are anticipated to be completed in 2028. A summary of these pilots is outlined below.
Brisbane City Council
Pilot 1:
Individual food waste dehydrators will be trialled within the home in a townhouse complex. The dehydrator contents will be used by the residents or the complex facilities management.
Pilot 2:
Kitchen caddies with liners will be used to collect food waste from residents in a city high-density complex. The material will be taken off-site for processing by anaerobic digestion.
Pilot 3:
Kitchen caddies with liners will be used to collect food waste from residents in a city high-density complex and deposited into a large-scale food waste dehydrator onsite. The dehydrated material will be taken off-site.
City of Gold Coast
Pilot 4:
Kitchen caddies with liners will be used to collect food waste from residents in a city high-density complex and deposited into a communal organics collection bin and processed off-site by composting.
Sunshine Coast Council
Pilot 5:
Kitchen caddies with liners will be used to collect food waste from a retirement village with each resident also supplied a kerbside green lid bin. The kerbside bin will be collected weekly for processing by a composter.
Noosa Shire Council
Pilot 6:
Kitchen caddies with liners will be used to collect food waste in short-stay accommodation at a resort and conference facility. The caddies will be collected by the cleaning staff and emptied into a designated organics collection bin. This material will be taken off-site for processing initially at a worm farm before transferred for processing by a composter.