AN education campaign has been flagged as a possible way to help Lake Macquarie residents understand changes to new bin collections in 2016.
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From this time, red-lid general waste bins will be collected fortnightly instead of weekly.
Food scraps that would normally go into the red bin will be placed in the green waste bin, to be collected weekly.
This waste will be turned into compost at a new plant that a council contractor will build.
However, there are still some items that will sit in the red bin for two weeks, including soiled nappies and hygiene products, which make up about 7 per cent of household waste.
Lake Macquarie council conducted a trial of a 240-litre kerbside nappy bin at 100 households earlier this year.
At the end of the fortnight the bins were between 30 and 40 per cent full. A council report said 5 per cent of households indicated they were likely to need the extra nappy bin, which the council could provide for a fee of $300 a year.
Lake Macquarie councillor Barry Johnston said this was an insignificant amount.
"With recycling and food scraps taken out of the red bin there's not much else left in it," Cr Johnston said.
"I believe Lake Macquarie residents will adjust quite quickly [to the changes], and for those who don't, an education campaign might help closer to the changeover."
However, some residents are not so sure. Cardiff South mother-of-three Stephanie Neilands described the changes as "insane".
"My vegetable scraps go to my chickens, puppies or rabbit," Mrs Neilands said.
"I rarely have any left over for the [red] bin, but I still easily fill it each week.
"What do I do the other week? Just pile it up and wait?"
Six other councils in NSW have already successfully moved to the same bin system.