Kerbside Waste Audit
& FOGO Performance
Case Study – Local Government Waste Behaviour Analysis
Knowwaste Pty Ltd have completed comprehensive kerbside waste audit programs across NSW and Victoria to better understand household waste behaviours, identify contamination issues, and measure the performance of Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) services.
The projects include detailed audits of general waste, mixed recycling, and organics bins across both Single-Unit Dwellings (SUDs) and Multi-Unit Dwellings (MUDs). The objectives are to provide each Council with reliable, evidence-based data to support future service planning, community education, and resource recovery improvements.
Project Scope
The project involved:
Baseline and follow-up kerbside waste audits
Household bin presentation and fullness assessments
Waste composition analysis across all kerbside streams
FOGO contamination monitoring
Leakage analysis of recoverable materials disposed to landfill
Comparative analysis between urban and regional collection areas
Data-driven recommendations for education and service optimisation
Methodology
Knowwaste undertakes fieldwork in accordance with all required guidelines such as NSW EPA kerbside audit guidelines and Sustainability Victoria guidelines. Bins contents are collected directly from the kerbside and transported to a secure sorting location where materials are manually separated into project categories.
All data is digitally recorded onsite using cellular iPads to ensure accuracy and consistency across the project. Waste materials are weighed and analysed to determine:
Household generation rates (kg/hh/week)
Diversion performance
Recycling contamination levels
Food waste disposal behaviours
Participation and presentation rates
Organics recovery opportunities
Visual assessments of FOGO bins are also conducted to better understand contamination trends and resident participation levels throughout.
Findings
The audits can identify important trends:
Significant quantities of food waste still being disposed of in general waste bins, highlighting opportunities for improved FOGO education.
Households with access to a FOGO service showed lower organics leakage into landfill compared to areas without the service.
Recycling contamination can be largely driven by soft plastics and bagged recyclables.
Organics bins generally demonstrated strong participation rates, though contamination increased slightly following the introduction of some new services.
Differences in disposal behaviour are observed between urban and regional households, and also between SUDs and MUDs.
Outcomes
The findings provided Councils with a clear understanding of how residents are using the kerbside system and where future improvements could be made.
Knowwaste delivered:
A comprehensive technical audit report
Executive summary reporting for council stakeholders
All raw data and photos
Visual graphs and infographics for community communication
Targeted recommendations for reducing contamination and improving diversion
Why It Matters
Accurate waste auditing provides Councils with the evidence needed to improve resource recovery, reduce landfill disposal, and design services that better align with community behaviours.
Knowwaste combines practical field experience with detailed technical analysis to help councils turn waste data into meaningful operational outcomes.