Bulk Verge Collection Review

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Consultation has concluded

Junk items on a verge waiting for pick up

The City of Fremantle is reviewing how we manage bulk waste to make sure we’re meeting community needs and working toward waste reduction targets.

In 2019 Council resolved to review the City’s verge collection services following FOGO implementation and the opening of the Recycling Centre, as it was anticipated there would be changes in residents bulk waste requirements.

We’d like to hear about your experiences of the current verge collection and drop-off service, and your ideas and preferences for going forward. Your input will help inform our future service provision for bulk waste (including things like furniture and large green waste). The models we choose will help the City work toward State targets, including 70% material recovery by 2030.


Current services

There are currently two ways for Fremantle residents to dispose of bulk goods: verge collections or drop off at the Recycling Centre.

1. Bulk verge collections

The City of Fremantle provides two verge-side collections for bulk goods each year – bulk waste in February and green materials in April/May, with each collection lasting two weeks.

During the collection times residents are invited to put items on the verge over a weekend, and they are collected by a City contractor the following week.

2. Recycling Centre drop-off

In addition to the verge collections, residents can drop unlimited amounts of green materials and up to 4 trailer loads of bulk goods to the Recycling Centre each year.

Residents can also drop-off unlimited amounts of cardboard, polystyrene, batteries, light globes, used oil and a range of other recyclables for free. A fee applies to mattress and tyre drop-off.


Other collection models

Depending on community satisfaction with our current service, the City can explore the viability of other ways to manage bulk waste. For example, models used by other local governments include on demand verge collections that residents can book on a date that suits them, on demand skip bin collection, tip passes, drop-offs only or a combination of these.

These options would require detailed costing and investigation to assess their feasibility.


We want to hear your thoughts on the current verge collection and drop-off service, and whether the City should explore other options.

Share your thoughts below by Sunday 18 April 2021.


The City of Fremantle is reviewing how we manage bulk waste to make sure we’re meeting community needs and working toward waste reduction targets.

In 2019 Council resolved to review the City’s verge collection services following FOGO implementation and the opening of the Recycling Centre, as it was anticipated there would be changes in residents bulk waste requirements.

We’d like to hear about your experiences of the current verge collection and drop-off service, and your ideas and preferences for going forward. Your input will help inform our future service provision for bulk waste (including things like furniture and large green waste). The models we choose will help the City work toward State targets, including 70% material recovery by 2030.


Current services

There are currently two ways for Fremantle residents to dispose of bulk goods: verge collections or drop off at the Recycling Centre.

1. Bulk verge collections

The City of Fremantle provides two verge-side collections for bulk goods each year – bulk waste in February and green materials in April/May, with each collection lasting two weeks.

During the collection times residents are invited to put items on the verge over a weekend, and they are collected by a City contractor the following week.

2. Recycling Centre drop-off

In addition to the verge collections, residents can drop unlimited amounts of green materials and up to 4 trailer loads of bulk goods to the Recycling Centre each year.

Residents can also drop-off unlimited amounts of cardboard, polystyrene, batteries, light globes, used oil and a range of other recyclables for free. A fee applies to mattress and tyre drop-off.


Other collection models

Depending on community satisfaction with our current service, the City can explore the viability of other ways to manage bulk waste. For example, models used by other local governments include on demand verge collections that residents can book on a date that suits them, on demand skip bin collection, tip passes, drop-offs only or a combination of these.

These options would require detailed costing and investigation to assess their feasibility.


We want to hear your thoughts on the current verge collection and drop-off service, and whether the City should explore other options.

Share your thoughts below by Sunday 18 April 2021.


Consultation has concluded

  • Engagement findings

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    The engagement findings have now been compiled and you can download a copy of the report here or in the Document Library on this page.

    What we heard

    From 17 March to 18 April 2021 the My Say Freo page had 410 visits. We received 237 submissions received in total, via My Say Freo (135), a separate random sample completed online (87), and submission boxes, post and email (15).

    There was a lot of satisfaction with the current service. Many people appreciate the ease and convenience of having a verge collection and the opportunity for community reuse. For those who don't like the current system, wanting more frequent collections and disliking the untidiness were the most common reasons for dissatisfaction, with a number of other concerns raised.

    About one third of respondents had an interest in investigating alternative options, particularly on-demand services.

    A follow up workshop was held on Thursday 6 May with 16 residents attending to hear about different collection models. Presentation slides from this workshop are available under Workshop Resources.

    Please read the engagement report for full details on the input we received.

    Next steps

    The City will continue to provide residents with an avenue to manage bulk goods. The current verge collections are popular, however as many suggested there may be an opportunity to reduce waste, increase recycling, reduce illegal dumping, improve amenity and provide more flexibility.

    Informed by trends and research in the industry, the City is considering four main options:
    • Business as usual (scheduled verge collections);
    • On-demand (pre-booked) verge collections;
    • On-demand (pre-booked) skip bin service; or
    • A hybrid of the different types of services.

    A business case is being developed which will look at the feasibility of each option for Fremantle and further examine the input that was provided.

    A report including the business case is expected to be presented to Council in the second half of 2021, and all submitters will be notified when the agenda is available for this meeting.

  • Community workshop - resources

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    On Thursday 6 May we held a follow-up workshop to talk to attendees about what we heard and potential options going forward.

    We heard from some fantastic speakers including:

    • Rebecca Brown from the WA Local Government Association (WALGA) on Better Practices for managing bulky verge materials
    • Libby Eustance from the Western Metropolitan Regional Council (WMRC) on Verge Valet, a pre-booked verge collection service
    • Rick Bryant from the City of Stirling on their pre-booked bulk bin service.


    Libby and Rick have made their presentation slides available - to find out more about Libby's discussion of the Verge Valet service click here, or to read more about Rick's discussion of the City's of Stirling's skip bin collection service click here.

    You can also find these presentations under the Workshop resources tab.

  • Community workshop - 6 May 2021

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    Interested in finding out more? We're holding a workshop to share the community’s recent survey feedback and discuss options in more detail. You can expect:

    - more information about the survey results and current service
    - speakers from WALGA, WMRC and City of Stirling talking about how bulk goods collection works in other areas
    - an opportunity to provide further feedback.

    Thursday 6 May, 5.00-7.00pm

    The Meeting Place, 245 South Terrace, South Fremantle OR you can also attend online.

    To RSVP, email wasteed@fremantle.wa.gov.au