National Recycling Week
Published on 11 November 2024
We are constantly trying to improve how we deal with our waste and getting our recycling right is an important part of that. National Recycling Week from 11-17 November is one way of highlighting the importance of recycling and why we all need to do a bit better.
It is now a year since the container despot scheme started in Victoria and overall Victorians have already returned more than a billion cans and bottles.
But there is still more to do. We need to move our economy from a linear one here we get resources, create products and then bury the waste in landfill to a circular economy where those resources that are used to make things are cycled back through to make other things. This is simply better resource management.
We have all had a recycling bin for more than 30 years now and still there is confusion about what can go in there. Part of that confusion is that it has changed a bit over the years. What has become clear is that it is easier to recycle some things more than others and like most resources, they are subject to global markets for them – metals, paper etc.
The easiest way to think about what goes into your recycling bin is to think about packaging - recycling bins are designed for packaging – cardboard boxes, metal cans, hard plastic containers and not much else. These tend to be simple single material items. They are not made for shoes, textiles, gas bottles etc.
Why do we need to separate materials into different bins? Glass is pretty simple – it is a significant contaminant of other recyclables like plastic, paper and cardboard. It often gets broken during bin collection and gets embedded in other materials making those materials a lot harder to recycle.
The one thing that is really important in all the bins we now have is that people make an effort to get it right – that is putting the right thing into the right bin. Putting incorrect items into the wrong bin costs money – it makes recycling unviable. If there is too much of it then it costs the whole community more.
In the Yarriambiack shire we are focused on what we can recycle and not send to landfill. We offer free green waste at our transfer stations – that material will be shredded and utilised as part of the old landfill capping. We use crushed concrete in our infrastructure works. Scrap metal and tyre recycling is located at all our transfer stations at no charge. People can also drop off larger e-waste items and mattresses at our transfer stations as well.
Other things we can recycle quite easily – but it takes some effort are batteries. There are quite a few drop off points around – most towns have a battery bin located in a public area and retailers such as Aldi, IGA supermarkets and Bunnings can accept batteries as well. What is really important about batteries is that they are not put into general waste or recycling bins – Lithium batteries in particular are known causes of fire in garbage trucks and landfill sites.
Your role in recycling doesn’t end once you put your recyclables in your yellow bin. If we are to make our recycling work properly then we need to be purchasing products that are made from recycled material as well. There are plenty of great examples from recycled plastic outdoor furniture through to recycled paper products, packaging that has recycled content and even recycled paper cat litter. Keep an eye out when you go shopping.