Be a good sort – get it right at the kerb
National Recycling Week starts on Novemeber 7th and Eurobodalla Shire Council is asking residents to ‘be a good sort’ and take greater care with their recyclables.
Every month the equivalent of 500 wheelie bins of rubbish collected from residents’ recycling bins is sent straight to landfill due to people misusing their yellow-lidded bins.
Plastic bags, dirty nappies, food and clothing are the worst offenders.
Council’s waste minimisation officer Belinda Wagner said most Eurobodalla residents had good intentions but were sometimes not aware of what could and could not be recycled.
“We’ve got very good recyclers in the Eurobodalla but there are things that people might not know. For example, some people collect their recyclables in a plastic bag and put it in their yellow-lidded bin. That whole bag of recyclables will end up in landfill because our system cannot process it in the plastic bag,” she said.
“If each household makes an effort to be a good sorter more materials can be recycled which saves landfill space and precious resources.”
Ms Wagner encouraged residents to consider the people sorting the contents of their yellow-lidded bins at the Material Recovery Facility in Moruya.
“Some things people put in can spoil the process and make the task very unpleasant for our sorters who work very quickly to keep up with machinery,” she said.
“We remind residents that food waste should be either composted or placed in red-lidded bins and food containers should be emptied and rinsed.”
Council has produced educational videos starring local comedian and celebrity housewife Mabel Cansort to help spread the message to ‘be a good sort’ during National Recycling Week. These include a short advertisement currently playing in the Shire’s two cinemas, while a five-minute video explaining the recycling process and what can and can’t be recycled is on council’s website and YouTube channel.
The videos explain the importance of “getting it right at the kerb”.
“The Household Waste and Recycling Guide is a fantastic resource detailing what can and can’t be recycled, collection dates and advice on how to properly dispose of other waste,” Ms Wagner said.
“There’s also a whole lot of materials people can take to our waste facilities to be recycled free of charge, such as vehicle and household batteries, polystyrene, cooking and motor oils, mobile phones, fluorescent light globes/tubes, TVs and computers, steel including whitegoods, metals, and excess household recycling items such as paper, cardboard, glass, plastic containers and cans.”
For more information visit the ‘Water, Waste and Recycling’ section on council’s website www.esc.nsw.gov.au
Media Release
