The Australian Organics Recycling Association, the industry body for organic composting and recycling, gave Orange City Council the Local Government Leadership award for its Orange Waste Project, of which the green-lidded bin project is a key part.

This latest step in the city’s recycling has reduced landfill by 41 per cent by diverting food scraps and garden waste into compost.

Orange City Council Environment and Economic Sustainability Policy committee chair, councillor Neil Jones said Orange residents should be congratulated on their co-operation.

“Despite the initial criticism, you can see that Orange citizens have embraced the organics recycling scheme. It’s just accepted practice now,” he said.

“The really encouraging thing is that Orange residents have learnt how to manage kitchen and garden waste effectively, through education and information leaflets.”

But the organics recycling program is still in its early days.

Cr Jones admitted while residents were successfully recycling their organic waste, they were not reaping the rewards of the finished product.

“The next step is to increase the sale of compost back to residents. There might be a way council can publicise that better,” he said.

“Big companies are buying a large bulk of the compost, which is a good source of income for council, but I think maybe council needs to look at how we can get residents more involved.”

alexandra.king@fairfaxmedia.com.au