A staggering 70 per cent of garbage thrown into Douglas Shire’s household bins does not need to go in there, a new council report has found.

Douglas Shire Council audits of what people throw out show our bins contain just 30 per cent of non-recyclable landfill, with the rest made up of 50 per cent organic waste and 20 per cent recyclable materials, according to the Draft Waste Reduction and Recycling Plan 2025-30.

With improved practices by homeowners, coupled with better education, more of that organic waste could be recycled via home compost bins and green-waste piles or bins, while the 20 per cent of recycling currently going into landfill bins could be redirected into the yellow-lidded recycling bin.

Many other councils across Australia, however, also have a three-bin system, with the third bin used for green waste.

But the DSC is not intending to bring in that system any time soon, with no mention whatsoever in the draft report of any possible need for household green bins - the report states that many households north of the Daintree River do not even have a yellow-lid bin system yet.

The need to try to divert green waste away from household bins is addressed only twice in the entire report, including “strategic priority number three”, which is listed as a “long term” goal.

“Encourage the diversion of organic waste from landfill, continue ongoing investigations for long-term opportunities,” that priority states.

The report also mentions an “Organics Strategy and Action Plan 2022-32” providing a “framework for improved management of organic material”.

In this week’s council meeting, Mayor Lisa Scomazzon and every one of the councillors heaped praise on the report, but made no mention of 70 per cent of our household-bin garbage not needing to go to landfill.