Waste bins are to be distributed to every house on the island in a bid to promote rubbish separation.

Households will be encouraged to keep the small green plastic basket in their kitchen, line it with a white biodegradable bag, and fill it with organic waste such as food scraps.

The white bags will then be picked up by waste collectors three times a week, and used to generate energy from gas at Malta’s waste processing facilities.
Organic waste will also be used to create a form of fertilizer called soil improver.

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Environment Minister Jose' Herrera launched the program on Monday, handing out the first organic waste bin to a home owner in Ħamrun. A total of 150,000 will be handed out. 

Door-to-door distribution of the bins started shortly afterwards. 

Speaking to reporters shortly afterwards, he said the project was part of the government’s efforts to reduce the amount of organic waste that ended up in landfills.

Up to half of every black mixed waste bag is organic material, with much of the recyclable waste often soiled by food scraps and rendered unusable.

WasteServ chief executive Tonio Montebello said collection of the new organic waste bags would start by the end of October.

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A pilot project earlier this year had already shown that households using the organic bins were also more inclined to separate other waste.

The government will soon also be rolling out four more larger waste separation bins.

The bins, for glass, mixed recyclables, sanitary waste, and other waste, will also be handed out to every household on the island in a bid to encourage proper waste separation.