The Victorian Government has launched the Back to Earth Initiative to improve resource recovery of organics. Back to Earth Initiative encourages appropriate use of Council green waste bins and the recycling of green waste to reduce the amount currently sent to landfill.

The initiative has been developed by the Metropolitan Waste Management Group (MWMG) in conjunction with eleven councils in Melbourne’s north and west: Banyule, Brimbank, Darebin, Hobsons Bay, Hume, Maribyrnong, Melton, Moonee Valley, Moreland, Nillumbik and Wyndham. It complements new organics processing facilities that will serve communities in the participating councils. MWMG is the Victorian Government body responsible for managing municipal solid waste across metropolitan Melbourne.

On Thursday (10 October 2013) Veolia opened its new organics processing facility at Bulla in Melbourne’s north which will process green waste from the participating Councils. The facility was built as part of the Northern and Western Organics Processing Contract and is the first step in creating a new wave of sustainable resource recovery facilities to service metropolitan Melbourne.

The Northern and Western Organics Processing Contract unlocks around $30 million of industry investment in infrastructure, and around $200 million in local government operating expenditure over the 15 year contract. It will generate dozens of ongoing employment opportunities and up to a hundred jobs during the construction.