Correct bin use

Bin placement responsibilities

With thousands of bins to collect every week, it's important we work together to ensure things run smoothly.

You can assist us by:

Placing your bins on the kerb as late as possible the night before your scheduled collection;
Placing your bins in a position so the truck can collect them easily – that means with the wheels away from the kerb and with a 30cm gap between the bins; and
Removing your bins from the kerb as soon as possible after collection.

Overflowing, overweight or incorrectly placed bins will not be collected. The weight limit of the lifting mechanism is 70kg for a 240L bin.

What should go in each bin?

Red Bin Yellow Bin Blue Bin Green Bin

Red Bin

Your red-lidded bin is collected weekly and is for non-recyclable household rubbish which is taken to landfill. One red bin is allocated to each separated or individual household while residents in apartments share larger bins.

Your red bin should be used to dispose:

food waste,
plastic bags and wrappers,
foam,
nappies,
ceramics,
glassware,
mirrors,
crockery and
other non-recyclable household rubbish.

Yellow Bin

Your yellow-lidded bin is collected fortnightly and is for recyclable containers which are taken to a facility to be sorted into their different material types (e.g. glass, aluminium, steel and plastic). One yellow bin is allocated to each separated or individual household while residents in apartments share bins.

Your yellow bin should be used to recycle:

single-use plastic bottles, tubs and containers you typically use in the kitchen, bathroom or laundry,
single-use glass bottles and jars, and
aluminium, steel and aerosol cans.

You can recycle right by:

Putting plastic bags, wrap and film in your red bin;
Placing all items in your yellow bin loosely;
Emptying food and liquids from bottles, containers and jars and replacing lids; and

Why can’t I put plastic bags in the recycling bin?

It’s not safe for recycling facility workers to open plastic bags full of recycling, and the bags get caught in the sorting machines. The bags have to be picked off the conveyor belt and sent to landfill so the recycling in plastic bags doesn’t get recycled.

Blue Bin

Your blue-lidded bin is collected fortnightly and is for paper and cardboard, which is taken to a facility to be made into new paper products. One blue bin is allocated to each separated or individual household while residents in apartments share bins.

Your blue bin should be used to recycle:

newspaper, magazines and catalogues,
pizza boxes with food removed,
phone books,
flattened cardboard and
milk, juice and cream cartons.

Paper should be clean (no food scraps, oils, paints etc).

Green Bin

Your green-lidded bin is collected fortnightly and is for garden cuttings which are taken to a composting facility and turned into compost and mulch. One green bin is allocated to each separated or individual household while residents in apartments share bins if the Owners’ Corporation has formally requested this service through Council.

Your green bin should be used to recycle:

grass clippings,
leaves,
cut flowers,
weeds,
small twigs and branches (<500mm long and <100mm thick), and
garden prunings.

Garden organics should be placed in the green bin loosely. Tree stumps, logs and soil are not permitted in the green bin.

Waste and recycling guide.jpg

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