Recycling Victoria Kerbside Education and Behaviour Change Research

Background and objectives

As part of the state government’s Recycling Victoria package, significant change is on the way for how many Victorians manage their kerbside waste. From 2021, many homes will be introduced to a food and garden organics (FOGO) system and many households will also begin separating glass from other recyclable items in a glass only bin.

To support the Recycling Victoria initiative a large-scale education and behaviour change campaign will be delivered to update Victorians on the household changes relevant to them, and in addition to encourage Victorians to avoid and minimise their waste.

Kantar Public Australia was commissioned to explore a range of key research questions to support the Recycling Victoria program, these included:

• What is Victoria’s levels of understanding of existing kerbside collection systems, and the upcoming FOGO and four-bin systems?
• More generally – what are Victorians’ understanding and levels of practice for each stream of waste?
• Where are the problem areas that need to be addressed?
• What are the low levels of understanding and practice that may impact on contamination and uptake of new kerbside collections?
• Importantly – how do we positively impact on these levels of knowledge and practice both in-home and out-of-home?
• What are the sources of information and key influential others who impact on knowledge and practice in relation to household waste disposal?
• What are the volumes and types of waste that are commonly disposed of in different waste streams – both correctly and incorrectly?
• What are common waste avoidance strategies that are used in households, how can these be harnessed and encouraged for the benefit of the environment?
• Specific consideration on the quantity and nature of single use plastics, and strategies to minimise this form of waste.

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