Recycle and reap rewards

Achieving a sustainable environment is easy, according to Naragebup Rockingham Environment Centre.

Centre chairwoman and education officer Alexis Grayson said people needed to alter their attitudes and cease being lazy when it came to recycling.

She said the family home contained numerous resources, which, with minor effort, could be suitable for composting at next to no expense.

“It comes down to habit and getting into a routine of sorting through waste,” she said.

Between Ms Grayson and her two children, the family only gets their bins collected once a month, because most of their waste is composted or recycled.

Ms Grayson said the key to great compost was establishing a cycle, and advised householders to create a raised open garden bed in three sections — one for scraps, one cooking and one ready-to-use.

She said the recipe for the perfect compost included soil, lime, egg shells, waste, shredded paper and leaves.

“Leave onion, citrus, celery and weeds out,” Ms Grayson said.

“Some weeds are okay, but couch just takes over when included.”

She said the ban was in place because it was too hard for bugs and bacteria to break it down.

She said excess tree matter could be chipped for the garden or put out for collection by the City of Rockingham this month.

Rockingham City Mayor Barry Sammels said the collection cost $220,000 each time.

The present green waste collection started on Monday and ends mid-June.

Refer to www.rockingham.wa.gov.au for specific zone dates and rules.