Brown Bins have been distributed to all households in the South Dublin County Council area. They are 140 litre in size and are to be used for food waste (including cooked and raw meat and fish, vegetables and fruit peelings, rice, pasta, bread and teabags) and garden waste (such as grass, weeds and hedge clippings). 

Using a Brown Bin can reduce the amount of waste in a Black Bin by 25-30%.

• When the Brown Bin collection starts the Black Bin collection will move to every two weeks; there will be a Black Bin collection one week, Brown Bin the following week, and so on.
• Collection of the Brown Bin (140 litre) will be half the cost (50%) of the Large (240 litre) Black Bin
• Householders with a waiver will be automatically credited with a number of bin lifts quarterly, allocated between the Black and Brown Bins.
• For hygiene reasons we encourage you to put the Brown Bin out for collection every two weeks. Please wrap food waste in newspaper and do not put plastic bags into the Brown Bin.
• The Waste Bye-laws for South Dublin County will mean that householders must take a Brown Bin when one is delivered.

What can I put in my brown bin?

• Fruit and vegetables and their peelings – cooked and uncooked
• Meat, fish, poultry and bones – cooked and uncooked
• Tea bags, coffee grinds and paper coffee filters
• Breads, cakes and biscuits
• Pasta and rice – cooked and uncooked
• Paper napkins, paper towels and food soiled light cardboard or paper such as pizza boxes
• Egg shells, eggs, dairy products such as yogurt, cheese, cream (no plastic packaging)
• Grass cuttings, leaves and weeds
• Old/dead plants and flowers

Waste Not Allowed in your Brown Bin

• Plastics of any kind
• Metal of any kind
• Glass or crockery
• Tin foil, sweet or crisp wrappers
• Milk or juice cartons
• Batteries, oils, lights, electrical goods, furniture, shoes or clothes
• Nappies
• Ashes, coal, rocks, gravel, stones, clay and stumps
• Weed killer
• Glossy paper or magazines
• Dog or cat litter

 
Please remember to locate your bin, handle side out, by the edge of the kerb. Your questions answered….

How do I use my Brown Bin?

• The Brown Bin is only for organic (kitchen & garden) waste.
• Please wrap food waste in newspaper or a paper bag to absorb any liquids and minimise smells.
• Do not put plastic bags into the Brown Bin.
• For hygiene reasons we encourage you to put the Brown Bin out for collection every two weeks.

When will my Brown Bin be collected?

The Brown Bin will be collected every two weeks.

Will the Black Bin collection change?

Once the Brown Bin collection begins, the collection of the Black Bin will also move to every every 2 weeks. Your new collection calendar will detail when your Black and Brown Bins will be collected.

WEEK 1 BROWN BIN
WEEK 2 BLACK BIN
WEEK 3 BROWN BIN
WEEK 4 BLACK BIN

The Green Bin will continue to be collected as normal.

How do I pay for my Brown Bin?

The Brown Bin will be paid for using your waste charges card, in the same way that you pay for your Black Bin. It will be necessary to have enough credit on your waste charges card to cover the cost of the Brown Bin lift - top up your waste charges card as follows:

• Online at www.southdublin.ie
• Over the counter at Post Offices or any of the hundreds of Payzone or PostPoint outlets nationwide

What if I have a waiver?

If you have a waiver, your bin waste credits will be automatically credited with a number of bin lifts on a quarterly basis but these will now be allocated between both your Black and Brown Bins (i.e. three Black Bins and three Brown Bins) from 1st August 2010.
Is there a charge for using the Brown Bin?
Yes. The cost of collecting the Brown Bin will be half the cost (50%) of the large (240 litre) Black Bin. An additional 30% of waste will be diverted from the Black Bin to the Brown Bin and you should not have to put out your Black Bin as often during the year. Therefore you should save money.

The Green Bin, Bring Banks and Civic Amenity remain free of charge for recyclable packaging.

Why do I need a Brown Bin?

• European Law (The Landfill Directive) states that we must reduce our biodegradable waste going to landfill by a minimum of 65%. At the moment, about 60% of the waste produced by each household is made up of materials that are either recyclable or compostable.Currently recyclable material is collected in your Green Bin and you probably bring glass to the Bring Bank and Civic Amenity, while all the other waste is put into the Black Bin and landfilled. Now you can save money and help the environment by putting your organic (food & garden) waste – 25-30% of your total waste - into the Brown Bin for collection every fortnight.
• We need to recycle and compost as much as possible to better manage and protect our environment from pollution. Everything that is disposed of in your Black Bin goes to landfill and is no longer of use. Separating kitchen and garden waste into a Brown Bin for collection allows it to be turned into compost for landscaping

What if I already have a compost bin?

• If you have a Garden Composter, you are already reducing your household waste and helping the environment. The important thing is to compost your organic (food and garden) waste; the Brown Bin allows you to compost additional items that you cannot put into a garden composter – such as dairy products, as well as raw and cooked meat and fish.
• The Waste Bye-laws for South Dublin County will mean that householders must take a Brown Bin if one is delivered to you.

For further information:

Lo Call: 1890253149 (Monday to Friday, 9am - 5pm)

Email: brownbins@sdublincoco.ie