Reduce your waste

We want to ensure a healthier environment by reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill. This also reduces waste disposal costs.

Waste hierarchy

The waste hierarchy indicates an order of preference for actions to reduce and manage waste. The hierarchy captures the progression of a material or product through stages of waste management and represents the life-cycle for each product.

The aim of the waste hierarchy is to ensure practical benefits from products and minimise waste. It can help prevent emissions of greenhouse gases, reduce pollutants, save energy and conserve.

Know your recycling

Understand what can be recycled. Recycle more from the office, tearoom, bathroom, garden shed and garage. Items such as plastics, paper, steel, aluminium, cardboard containers and many other items can be recycled. See the A-Z list of items that can be recycled by clicking here.

Get a green bin

Green bins for food and garden waste are available in towns. Things such as small loose garden prunings, leaves, weeds, grass clippings, flowers and small branches can be put in your food and garden waste bin (green lid) as well as all your food scraps, shredded paper, compostable bags (AS4736 only) and animal poo. For information on how your food and garden waste is composted at a commercial composting facility near Stanhope, visit the Biomix webpage.

Start a backyard compost

Veggie scraps, fruit peelings, tea bags, coffee grounds, leaves, grass, branches and even small amount of paper and newspaper make great compost.

There are many composting systems available including worm farms, compost bins or kitchen composting systems like the Bokashi Bin.