WHERE TO THROW STUFF AWAY

SEPARATE YOUR WASTE

Everyone seems intent on helping preserve the environment and so recycling was created to ensure we took extra time with sorting our rubbish.  

With that in mind, please do not bundle up all you are intending to throw away into a plastic bag and just toss it in the red-lidded bin outside -- or throw plastic bags in the recycle (yellow-lidded bin) outside because I do not like diving into those disgusting bins to fish out stuff that could result in our getting a fine from the council (the cost of which I will pass on to everyone in the house).

Here is what you need to know about where to throw stuff away:

1. Trash bin/ waste basket (middle)

This bin is for other rubbish, plastic wrap, leftover food stuff that doesn’t go to the compost (such as rice, meat, bones, hot grease or liquids.  This bin has a plastic liner so when it is full, it is easy to pull out, tie up and take to the General Waste Bin, see below.

2. Recycle Box (to the right of trash bin)

The black, plastic square box to the right of the trash bin is for all things that go in the Recycling bin (see below).  Please do not throw plastic wrap, tissues, potato chip bags or other types of plastic food bags or paper towels in it.  And if it is full, please take it outside and dump it in the recycling bin.  If it is slimy with stuff, please use the hose outside and rinse it out as the slugs/ snails love to slip and slide around in that muck.

3. Paper box with white plastic basket in it (to left of trash bin with dust pan and brush on it)

This contains ONLY clean, reusable plastic bags (feel free to use them.  If you have a clean plastic bag someone else might be able to use, please fold it and place it in there).

4. Compost (on the counter)

If you have vegetable or fruit peelings, these go in the ice cream container beside the coffee machine.

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General waste bin

This bin is for waste that can’t be composted or recycled through the other weekly services.

The following materials are NOT to be put in your general waste bin:

·   Vegetation (put it in the vegetation bin with the green lid)

·   Ashes, either hot or cold

·   Liquids like paint, oil or chemicals

·   Building materials like concrete, bricks and sawdust

·   Large pieces of metal

·   Tree stumps

·   Excavated material such as soil, sand or stones

Weight limit: 80Kg

Recycling bin

This bin is for recyclable items. Rinse out all containers (no food bits please!). Remove bottle lids and discard separately in this bin.

The following materials are permitted to be put in your recycling bin:

·   All rigid disposable plastic containers from the kitchen, bathroom and laundry*

·   Glass bottles and jars** that are clear, brown or green

·   Aluminium cans

·   Steel cans

·   Milk cartons, Tetra Paks, and Poppers

·   Aerosol cans

·   Paper, newspapers, magazines

·   Cardboard

* If the plastic items can easily be squashed in your hand (i.e. plastic film and chip packet wrappers) they cannot be recycled through the yellow-lid recycling bin.

**Jar lids can be recycled (they are large enough to be captured). Remove them from the jars and put them into the recycling bin separately.

The following materials are NOT to be put in your recycling bin:

·   Plastic bags and plastic wrap

·   Window or mirror glass

·   Plastic toys

·   Crockery or porcelain (plates and mugs)

·   Coffee cups and lids

·   Drinking glasses

·   Light bulbs

·   Pizza boxes (unless clean)

·   Meat trays

·   Foam or Styrofoam

·   Bubble wrap

·   Wax-coated fruit boxes

·   Paint tins

More information on how to recycle tricky items can be found in the A-Z of Recycling.

Council does not use the plastics identification code to distinguish between “accepted” and “not accepted” items as this code does not represent whether an item can successfully be recycled – it only identifies the type of plastic in the item. Council’s recycling contractor is able to process all of the seven plastics types as long as they are fall into one of the collected categories (e.g. clean rigid plastic containers from the kitchen, bathroom or laundry).

Weight limit: 80Kg

Vegetation bin

This bin is for garden material only, as it is composted to create garden products and soil additives. Food waste, pet litter and bioplastics/compostable plastics are not accepted in vegetation bins as they require specialist composting and disposal. 

Bins weighing over 90 kilograms cannot be emptied. 

The following materials are permitted to be put in your vegetation bin: 

·   Grass cuttings (put it in last to avoid it sticking to the bottom of your bin) 

·   Leaves and twigs 

·   Prunings 

·   Weeds 

·   Tree loppings (must be less than 50 mm in diameter and 400 mm in length) 

·   Dead flowers 

The following materials are NOT to be put in your vegetation bin: 

·   Food scraps and waste 

·   Pet litter 

·   Bioplastics/Compostable plastics 

·   Plastic bags 

·   Building timber 

·   Tree stumps or loppings bigger than the above 

·   Treated, painted or stained timber 

·   Other general household waste 

·   Fence posts

Weight limit: 80Kg

If you need more information search ‘Willoughby City Council Recycling or go here:  https://www.willoughby.nsw.gov.au/Residents/Waste-and-recycling/Weekly-collection