The council’s redesigned A-Z Disposal Guide makes it easier than ever to put the right item in the right bin – and reduce Onkaparinga’s landfill.
The new guide is available in hard copy and online and has 2 great innovations: printable sheets and a quick reference guide for more common items.
“People will be surprised at what they might have been putting in the wrong bin,” says Lynda Wedding, Onkaparinga’s Coordinator Waste and Recycling Education.
“Even with the best of intentions, it’s not always easy to know what can be composted, what can be recycled and – as a last resort – what must go into the waste-to-landfill bin.
“That’s why we now have single sheets people can print out and a quick, colour-coded reference guide. No more confusion. No more mistakes.”
The council collects waste in three bins: green organics, recyclables and waste to landfill.
The green organics bin is for plants, food scraps, approved compostable items like wooden cutlery, tissues and paper towels, and items like disposable cups and plates that carry the compostable logo. Even pet poo can go in the green bin – provided it’s in compostable packaging.
The recycling bin takes hard plastics like bottles and other rigid plastic containers, glass, paper, cardboard, and metal tins and cans.
The waste-to-landfill bin is for soft plastic packaging such as plastic bags and wrappers, household crockery and toys, foam and polystyrene, and small plastic lids.
Food scraps and garden waste in green organics bins are commercially composted locally to create high-grade compost.
Recycling is separated and sorted at the Southern Materials Recovery Facility located in Seaford Heights before being dispatched for recycling.
The facility is the largest of its kind in South Australia with the capacity to process 60,000 tonnes of recyclables each year. It is a joint initiative of Re.Group and the Southern Region Waste Recycling Authority, a joint subsidiary of the Cities of Onkaparinga, Holdfast Bay and Marion.
Some items are prohibited from all 3 bins, such as hazardous waste, asbestos, electrical and electronic goods, batteries, scrap metals, lights and medicines. The disposal guide shows where these can be taken for appropriate disposal or recycling.
Lynda says that the technology for recycling and composting is continually advancing, with more opportunity each year to reduce the amount of waste going into landfill.
Over the past 5 years, Onkaparinga has seen less waste produced per household and last year the council diverted 51.5 per cent of household waste from landfill via the recycling and organics bins.
“Because what we can achieve is constantly improving, the online disposal guide will be regularly updated,” she says.
“Our ultimate aim is to create a cleaner, greener and more sustainable Onkaparinga with a thriving circular economy that keeps materials in use for longer through reuse, repair and recycling and sees few items going into landfill.”
The redesigned A-Z Disposal Guide is available online or in hard copy from council offices, libraries, community centres and youth centres.
For more information on bins, waste and recycling, go to the council’s website.
Details of forthcoming waste and recycling initiatives such as The Great Unwaste – a series of workshops starting from 20 August – will soon be available on the site.
In the meantime, why not try your hand at the council’s brand new bin sorting game.