What happens to your recyclables?
Check out this YouTube video showing how your recyclables are processed at the Materials Recovery Facility.
Your Yellow Bin
Do you recycle at home and work? By recycling effectively you save money, carbon emissions and you contribute to a sustainable society and future.
Each person on the Coffs Coast generates approximately 1 tonne of rubbish every year. Of this, up to 40% is recyclable.
There are many things that you CAN RECYCLE, check this out:
- Aluminium foil and cans
- Clean paper and cardboard
- Milk and Juice cartons including tetrapacks
- Glass bottles and jars such as beer and wine bottles, jam and vegemite jars etc. Please - no light globes,drinking glasses, mirrors, pyrex or crockery - these go in & your red bin.
- Steel food cans and lids; such as baked beans, dog food etc.
- Empty aerosol cans
- Empty Paint cans
- Plastic containers - we call it rigid plastic, but just check to see if it's got a recycle symbol and a number 1 to 5. We can't recycle numbers 6 and 7 - these ones go in your red bin.
Please do NOT put any of these in your Yellow Bin:
- Plastic bags or wrappers such as cling wrap or chips/biscuit packets.
- Meat trays, unless they have the recycle symbol and number 1-5 on them.
- Styrofoam or polystyrene.
- Non recyclable plastics such as clothes baskets, buckets, hoses
- Disposable nappies
- Clothing / fabrics / ropes
- Window, mirror and light globe glass
- Drinking glasses, pyrex or crockery
- Hazardous waste, gas bottles or batteries (see below)
** These items all belong in your RED bin **
What about the rest?
Some items do not belong in any of your three bins. Unacceptable waste and other waste includes hazardous materials and chemicals, batteries, flourescent tubes, builders waste and more.
If you're still unsure, call us on 1800 265 495 or email us.
What if your recycling bin fills up before collection day?
If you find yourself with more recycling than you can fit in your standard 240 ltr bin, you do have some options;
- Get a bigger bin - we can provide you with a 360ltr bin for just an additional $52 per annum [add image]
- Get a second bin - an additional 240ltr bin is available to you for an additional $71 per annum (contact us on 1800 265 495 and we will send you an application form)
- Take your recyclable glass bottles and jars, plastic& bottles and cans to a container bell
- Crush all your cardboard and plastic containers
- Crush aluminium cans
- Use your newspapers to wrap your food scraps
- Place your small paper waste (ie - envelopes, letters, flyers etc) into a cardboard box and crush it
- Look for items in the supermarket with less packaging
- Visit a FREE recycling drop off point:
Coffs Coast Resource Recovery Park - Englands Road, Coffs Harbour. Open 7 days from 7.30am to 5pm. Phone (02) 6648 4580
Raleigh Waste Centre - Shortcut Road, Raleigh. Open 7 days from 8am to 5.30pm. Phone (02) 6655 3777
Nambucca Waste Management Facility - Old Coast Road, Nambucca. Open 7 days from 7.30am to 4.30pm
Waste Transfer Stations
Woolgoolga - Willis Road; open weekends from 8am to 4pm
Coramba - East Bank Road; open weekends from 8am to 4pm
Bellingen - Bowraville Road; open Monday to Friday from 7am to 5pm and weekends from 9am to 4pm
Dorrigo - Old Coramba Road; open Tuesday/Thursday/Friday from 8am to 5.30pm and weekends from 8am to 5pm
Hints and Tips
- Rinse out recylables in your dishwashing water before you empty the sink – this will help keep your bin clean
- Do not place recyclables in a plastic bag. Plastic bags cannot be recycled and are treated as contamination
- Don’t be tempted to place recyclables in your red bin if your yellow bin is full; this may result in a contamination sticker being placed on your bin
If you are still unsure about anything – call the hotline 1800 265 495
The Environmental Benefits
Greenhouse Gas Savings
A typical household recycling 3.76kg each week saves about 106kg of carbon emissions each year.
This is equivalent to saving half of the electricity used for household lighting and 40% per cent of the electricity used for cooking in a normal household.
On a statewide basis, this results in a reduction of 229,000 tonnes per year in carbon emissions, which is about the same CO2 savings that could be made by permanently removing 55,000 cars from our roads.
To put this in perspective, if you, the householder, fill your recycling bin to the brim, every fortnight, then in effect; your positive impact on the environment would be the same as if you had:
- permanently removed 580 cars from the roads
- saved the annual electricity requirements of 371 homes
- saved enough water to fill 1449 backyard swimming pools OR
- the annual water usage of 852 people
....not a bad effort really, when all we have to do is put the right thing in the right bin......
* Sources; ABS, CHCC Community Profile, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water.
Things that DO go in your yellow bin:
Things that DON'T go in your yellow bin:
Is your yellow bin too full?
Get a bigger bin or an additional bin - email us for an application form
Take your extra glass bottles, jars, plastic bottles and cans to a container bell
Visit a free recycling drop off point in your area
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