I refer to the letter by Frank Rizzo ‘Food waste bag will soon stink’ (November 7).

We would like to bring to the attention of Mr Rizzo that in tandem with the introduction of the organic bag, the frequency of collection of the black bag has also been reduced in the five localities that are participating in the pilot project.

Moreover in the localitieschosen the collection of the black bag was not daily, with theexception of Mdina being a touristic locality.

Given that during the pilot phase collection of organic waste is being carried out twice weekly, which is being done to establish a balance between the collection of the three different bags, residents in the chosen localities have been informed that high-odour food waste such as fish may be disposed of in the black bag when necessary.

Moreover, the commencement of the project in autumn was a deliberate choice to avoid the excessive summer heat and introduce the new system slowly, which system is being run on a trial basis in the spirit of a pilot.

Based on the results of thesix-month pilot phase and feedback gathered from all stakeholders, changes to the system may be considered prior to taking the next step towards the extension of the project. The aim is to eventually establish a collection system which can be extended nationally.

The public is welcome to send any feedback about the project directly to Wasteserv, responsible for project implementation.

The pilot project is spearheaded by the Ministry for Sustainable Development, the Environment and Climate Change with the full support of the Ministry for Justice, Culture and Local Government.