THE RECYCLING REVOLUTION A GUIDE TO RECYCLING RIGHT
Introduction Northern Rivers Waste is the waste services arm of Lismore City Council, providing residential collections and tailored commercial waste management solutions. Our aim is to reduce the environmental, social and financial impacts of waste management through industry best practice. We aim to support our community to avoid waste generation and promote waste as a valuable resource to be reused, recovered and recycled. In 2014 Council constructed a $3.65 million Materials Recovery Facility (MRF), a specialised plant that sorts and separates recyclable materials, ready to be sent off and made into new products. We process organics and green waste into nutrient-rich mulch and compost, run the Revolve Shop for the sale of pre-loved household goods, and provide community and school groups with the opportunity to see all of these processes in action through our many education programs and on-site tours. By dealing with the waste we create in our own backyards, we are working toward the Imagine Lismore goal of becoming a model of sustainability.
By dealing with the waste we create in our own backyards, we are working toward the Imagine Lismore goal of becoming a model of sustainability.
Our locations ►►Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre • 313 Wyrallah Road, East Lismore Opening hours: Monday to Friday
7am-4pm
Saturday and Sunday
9am-4pm
Public holidays
Closed
►►Nimbin Waste Transfer Station • Blade Road, Nimbin Opening hours: Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday
9am-4pm
Waste brought to the transfer station is charged by the 240L wheelie bin or equivalent.
►►Resource Recovery Collection Stations To assist in the collection of special recyclable materials, free Resource Recovery Collection Stations have been established across the Lismore City Council area at the following locations: • Lismore City Council Corporate Centre in Goonellabah. • Co-Op Bookshop at Southern Cross University. • Bunnings Warehouse, Bruxner Highway, Lismore. • Nimbin Waste Transfer Station. • Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre. Items accepted for collection include household batteries, mobile phones, reading glasses, printer cartridges, CDs and DVDs, corks and X-rays.
►►Recycling Drop-Off Centres • Brewster Street, Lismore (opposite Lismore Shopping Square) Opening hours: Daily 7am-8pm
• Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre The drop-off centre has a number of large skips and smaller bins for the drop-off of recyclable items including: • Paper and cardboard. • Mixed recycling. • Polystyrene and plastic wrap. • Resource Recovery Collection Satchels. The drop-off centre is also the location of a community sharps collection bin.
►►Lismore Revolve Shop • Located within the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre Opening hours: Tuesday
9am-2pm
Thursday
9am-2pm
Friday
9am-12 noon
Saturday
9am-1pm
Monday, Wednesday, Sunday
CLOSED
Our waste collection service Lismore City Council offers a range of waste collection services. These are the standard services available throughout the area: ►►Urban waste collection • 360-litre recycling bin • 240-litre organics bin • 140-litre waste bin • Organics kitchen caddy
►►Rural waste collection • 360-litre recycling bin • 240-litre waste bin Please note: With the introduction of our MRF, the new standard yellow-lidded recycling bin is a larger, 360-litre bin. Most people have a 240-litre bin. Should you wish to upsize your recycling bin, this can be done for a one-off fee. Please contact Council on 1300 87 83 87 for details.
►►Commercial waste collection You choose! As a business you can decide which size bin best suits your needs. We have bins for waste, organics, recycling, paper and cardboard, or multistream (mixed polystyrene and plastic wrap). Choose from a 240-litre, 360-litre, 660-litre or 1100-litre bin and let us tailor a service to accommodate the needs of your business.
►►Our Tip Free Days Our Tip Free Days are super popular and for good reason. You can clean out your cupboards, shed or garage four times a year and bring all your excess waste to the tip – for free! Tip Free Days are on the third Sunday of February, May, August and November from 9am to 4pm at the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre. Mark them in your calendar today.
Your WASTE service
Yes
these items go in your WASTE bin
Loose plastic bags or soft plastics
Chip packets
Disposable nappies
Cigarette butts
Treated timber
Kitty litter
Any foil-lined packaging
Important: Remember these basic rules for all your wheelie bins: • Place your bins out for collection the night prior. • Place your bins 50mm apart on the kerb. • Do not compact your waste inside the bin as this may result in it failing to empty.
no
these items are not acceptable
Gas bottles and fire extinguishers
Hazardous chemicals
Soil (large amounts)
HAZARDOUS WASTE
Gas bottles and fire extinguishers can be taken to the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre for disposal. Charges may apply.
Chemicals, acids and paints can be taken to the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre for correct disposal.
Asbestos
Asbestos can be disposed of safely with a Household Asbestos Disposal Kit. These are available for purchase from Council for only $120, which includes a voucher to dispose of up to 100kg of asbestos, or 10 square metres. Our DIY kits provide everything you need – from goggles and coveralls to drop sheets and waste asbestos bags – so you can safely remove asbestos from your home. Under NSW law, people can only remove 10 square metres of asbestos without a licensed contractor.
Your organics service
Yes
these items go in your green bin
Fruit and vegetable scraps
Grass clippings and leaves
Meat and fish
Pruned garden waste, twigs and small branches
Pasta, bread and rice
Soiled paper/ cardboard, i.e. pizza boxes and paper towel
Shredded paper
Important: To prevent smells occurring in your large organics bin try the following: • Keep the bin in the shade. • Try layering your fruit and vegetable scraps with other green waste (lawn clippings, leaves, etc.) • Wrap vegetable scraps in newspaper. • Hose out your bin on the garden or lawn after it is emptied. • Use compostable bags purchased through Council to collect your kitchen organics.
no
these items are not acceptable
Large amounts of soil
Treated timber
Plastic bags or plant pots
Council is committed to keeping waste out of landfill and reducing greenhouse gases by recycling our organic waste into nutrientrich compost and mulch. In landfill, organic waste breaks down to produce methane, which is a greenhouse gas 30 times more potent than CO². To assist residents we introduced the BIOcycle system, which combines a kitchen caddy with compostable bags to assist in the collection of organic food waste inside the home. The BIOcycle system makes it easy to recycle organics with no mess or nasty odours. The use of compostable bags in the caddies makes it easy to transfer your household organics from the kitchen to your large organics bin. The BIOcycle system is available to Lismore households that have an organics service. You just need to sign up when you purchase your compostable bags from Council’s Corporate Centre in Goonellabah or our Save n Waste Recycle Store located within SHOPBABY at 126 Woodlark Street, Lismore.
Your recycling service
Yes
these items go in your recycling bin
Paper, cardboard and magazines
All hard plastic containers
Bagged plastic bags and soft plastics
Aluminium cans and clean foil, aerosol and steel cans
Bagged polystyrene
Recycle right = recycle more! Having trouble fitting all of your recycling in your 240-litre bin? You can now purchase a 360-litre bin for a one-off fee. Phone us on 1300 87 83 87.
Glass bottles and jars, crockery, drinking glasses, pyrex and plate glass
Specially marked Resource Recovery Collection Satchels
no
these items are not acceptable
Nappies
Loose polystyrene
Clothing and textiles
Garden organics and food scraps
Loose plastic bags or wrapping
String, rope or cable
Shredded paper (this belongs in your organics bin)
Scrap metal and appliances
Grab a Resource Recovery Collection Satchel Resource Recovery Collection Satchels enable us to collect problem waste through the recycling service. Problem waste includes household batteries, reading glasses, corks, CDs and DVDs, mobile phones and accessories, small electronics (such as cameras, iPods, calculators) and printer cartridges. These items must be placed into a Resource Recovery Collection Satchel prior to being placed into your recycling bin. The Resource Recovery Collection Satchels are available free from the Revolve Shop, Council's Corporate Centre in Goonellabah and the Lismore Library.
Windscreen glass
PLEASE!
NO sharps! NO dead animals! NO asbestos!
A recycling revolution In 2014 we constructed a state-of-the-art, $3.65 million Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) and Glass Processing Plant. Our MRF (pronounced 'Murph') is a specialised plant that sorts and separates recyclables, ready to be sent off and made into new products.
Our MRF will process up to 15,000 tonnes of recyclables per year including materials from our neighbouring councils, making Lismore the recycling hub of the region. The Glass Processing Plant is purpose built to recover glass from the co-mingled recycling stream and crush the glass to produce glass sand for road construction. The glass sand has an internal market within Council as it can be used at Council’s asphalt plant at Blakebrook Quarry instead of mined sand.
This reduces truck movements on the road, the amount of glass going to landfill and the volume of raw materials we need to dig up. This is good news, as making roadbase from recycled materials uses considerably less energy and water, and creates less air pollution. Our MRF will earn Council money and enable us as a community to deal with the waste created in our own backyards. This is helping us work toward the Imagine Lismore goal of Lismore becoming a model of sustainability.
how d
cardboard scre
2
household recyclables delivered to MRF
1
recyclables enter here
manual pre-sort
•RRC SATCHELS waste/ contamination •BAGGED POLYSTYRENE •BAGGED plastic bags
legend
A journey through MRF waste bagged plastic bags, resource recovery collection satchels, bagged polystyrene
1.
paper & cardboard glass plastic steel aluminium
glass imploder magnet (removes lids)
steel ( jar lids )
2.
3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
8. 9. 10.
does it work?
een
2
cardboard glass 3 screen 4
newsprint
newsprint screen
waste manual 6 paper sort mixed paper screen
5
mixed paper 7
magnet
glass screen
steel
baLed steel
mixed plastic
baLed plastic
aluminium
baLed aluminium
manual 8 plastics sort
eddy current
9
glass sand 10
residual waste
All materials printed on Australian made, 100% carbon-neutral paper.
R U L E
1
The Dirty Dozen 12 Recycling Rules for your yellow bin
Did you know? • Every week in Australia, 17.5 million steel cans are recycled – enough steel to build 900 new cars.
BAG THE BAG You can now recycle plastic bags and all soft plastics including clean cling wrap, fruit and vegie bags, bubble wrap and soft packaging from toilet paper etc. Place them in our specially marked bags or a white plastic bag and tie them up.
R U L E
4
• Shredded paper clogs our hard-working MRF machinery. Pop it in your organics bin instead. • The MRF processes 150-200 tonnes of recycling every single week. • The most common form of hazardous waste generated by Australians is batteries.
BAG DON'TTHEWASH BAG Recyclable containers need to be empty and free of food but they don’t need to be washed. Save water and elbow grease. Some MRF rules make your life easier!
R U L E
R U L E
2
3
ROADS PAVED BAG BAG WITHTHE GLASS
NO STRINGS ATTACHED BAG THE BAG
All glass and crockery will be crushed into sand and used for road base. Pyrex, drinking glasses, crockery and window glass are now accepted in your recycling bin along with glass bottles and jars. No windscreens please.
String, rope and electrical cable can become tangled around the MRF machinery, hindering the recycling process. Please do not place these items in your recycling bin.
R U L E
R U L E
5
6
CLEAN BAG THE BAG POLYSTYRENE
LEAVE THE BAGLABEL THE BAG
Clean, bagged polystyrene can now be placed in your recycling bin. Put it in a plastic bag and tie it up. Please no beanbag beans.
The labels on bottles and containers wash off during the recycling process. There is no need to remove them.
R U L E
7
The Dirty Dozen 12 Recycling Rules for your yellow bin
Did you know? • Australia is one of the highest waste generating countries in the world.
BAG LOOSEN THE BAG UP Place recyclables into the bin loose, not stacked inside one another or in plastic bags. (This excludes polystyrene and soft plastics.)
R U L E
10
• Recycling old aluminium uses only 5% of the energy used to make new aluminium. • The energy saved by recycling one aluminium can is enough to run a TV for three hours. • Each week we recycle approximately 90,000 cans through our MRF.
THEPLEASE BAG NOBAG FOOD Food and food-spoiled containers such as pizza boxes belong in your organics bin. Please do not put them in your recycling bin.
R U L E
R U L E
8
9
BAG HARDEN THE BAG UP You can place all hard plastics in your recycling bin regardless of whether they display the triangle or not. This includes plastic tableware and cutlery, toys and plant pots.
BAG ATHE BAG GRAB SATCHEL
Grab a Resource Recovery Collection Satchel for household batteries, reading glasses, corks, X-rays, CDs and DVDs, mobile phones and accessories, printer cartridges and small electronics such as cameras, iPods and calculators.
R U L E
R U L E
11
12
BAGATHE BAGIT PUT LID ON You can now leave the lids on all your recyclables. Put the lids back on your plastic bottles and containers, glass jars and bottles (including twist tops) and put them in your recycling bin.
EVERY LITTLE BIT COUNTS BAG THE BAG Place all small plastics such as bread tags and straws in an empty milk bottle, put the lid on and place in your recycling bin. They are too small for the MRF machinery to remove on their own but are still a valuable resource.
In a throwaway society full of waste, it feels good to purchase products you know are kind on the environment. Our Save n Waste Recycle Store is full of eco-friendly household items for your own home as well as groovy, sustainable products that make excellent, guilt-free gifts. The shop is located within SHOPBABY at 126 Woodlark Street in Lismore’s CBD. The range of products is amazing – from the ever-popular compost caddies and Biobags, which keep your kitchen odour and mess-free, to compostable Gently nappies, biodegradable bin liners and reusable drink bottles. As well as these clever and useful household items, there are plenty of other products that make great presents for your loved ones. Our cute mini wheelie bins are an absolute hit with the kids or choose from a funky reusable coffee cup or eco-silk shopping bag, available in all shades of the rainbow. Drop in to the Save n Waste Recycle Store today.
Save n Waste Recycle Store 126 Woodlark Street, Lismore
Lismore
Revolve Shop There’s always a bargain to be found at the Lismore Revolve Shop, our second-hand store. Located within the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre on Wyrallah Road, the Lismore Revolve Shop sells a range of second-hand goods, promoting reuse and keeping them out of landfill. You will find everything from bikes and lawnmowers to suitcases and lounge suites‌ even the kitchen sink! Come and discover treasures and bargains galore.
Education Council provides a range of education services to help householders, school students, early childhood organisations, businesses and community groups understand more about resource recovery, waste management and recycling. These services include tours of the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre, business waste assessments, home visits, displays at events and local shopping centres, and in-service presentations to school and community groups. You can also visit the Lismore City Environment Education Centre, which offers facilities for workshops and school group events.
Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre tours Guided bus tours of the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre are available to school and community groups. They are an excellent way for kids and adults alike to see first-hand what happens to the waste we create in our own homes. Watch how your recycling is separated, see the landfill up close and personal, or watch polystyrene being melted. There is always much to learn and discover at the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre. If you're lucky, you may even get to meet one of our resident koalas! Making a booking or enquiry. Tours are available Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. For bookings contact the Waste Hotline on 1300 87 83 87.
Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens
The Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens sits within the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre, providing a beautiful backdrop to the facility. Officially opened to the public in June 2013, the focus of these unique gardens is on rainforest and other plant species endemic to an area within 200km of Lismore. The aim is to support the conservation of local rainforest species, facilitate scientific plant research, educate the public about this special environment, and provide a place for recreation. The gardens feature several walking paths and shaded picnic areas, and are open to the public 7am-4pm weekdays and 9am-4pm on weekends. The gardens are continually expanding and improving, due largely to a group of energetic volunteers called Friends of the Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens. The Friends have a working group in the garden every Wednesday morning and the last Sunday of the month. New volunteers are very welcome.
In addition to our kerbside recycling programs, Northern Rivers Waste operates an extensive range of recycling programs including:
AGRICYCLE AGRICYCLE AGRICYCLE Lismore City Council rural recycling program
Lismore City Council rural recycling program
oil
Lismore City Council rural recycling program
oil
oil filters
Used oil and oil filters are collected and recycled. Oil filters are crushed to remove the residue oil and the casing is recycled. Volumes of oil over 100 litres will attract a handling fee.
AGRICYCLE
AGRICYCLE
SILAGE WRAP
farm plastics
Silage wrap is made from linear, low-density polyethylene and is fully recyclable. The wrap must be kept separate from twine and netting, shaken to remove any residue and rolled into a tight ball.
Farm plastics such as stock feed and bulk bags can be dropped off free of charge. Please roll the bags into a tight ball
chemicals
farm drums
Lismore City Council rural recycling program
AGRICYCLE Lismore City Council rural recycling program
Up to 20 litres/20 kilograms can be dropped off free of charge at any one time for recycling. Volumes over 20 litres/20 kilograms will be accepted but charges will apply at a per kilogram rate.
Lismore City Council rural recycling program
AGRICYCLE Lismore City Council rural recycling program
Plastic and steel chemical drums of all sizes are recycled. The plastic drums are made into new drums and wheelie bins. Drums must be triple rinsed and have lids removed.
All of the items above can be dropped off at the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre.
Construction and Demolition waste (C&D)
Much of the waste produced when constructing, renovating and demolishing homes can be reused or recycled. They can be taken to the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre (fees apply). Items include: • • • • • • •
Concrete Steel and aluminium Timber Bricks and tiles Glass Gypsum plasterboard Carpets (in good condition)
Electronic waste
eWaste is accepted at the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre free of charge. Items include: • • • •
Televisions Personal computers, laptops, notebooks, palmtops and tablets Computer monitors Parts for personal computers e.g. internal hard drives, motherboards, cards, DVD and CD drives, internal power supplies, CPUs • Computer peripherals e.g. mice, keyboards, joysticks, game-pads, scanners, web cameras • Printers e.g. ink-jet, dot matrix, laser and multi-functional devices
Fluorescent light globes
These can be recycled at the following locations: • • • • • •
Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre Lismore City Council Corporate Centre, 43 Oliver Avenue, Goonellabah Nimbin Waste Transfer Station, Blade Road, Nimbin Cetnaj Electrical, Wyrallah Road, East Lismore Haymans Electrical, Snow Street, South Lismore Bunnings Warehouse, Bruxner Highway, South Lismore
Polycycle
Polystyrene can be recycled at: • Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre • Brewster Street Drop-off Centre
Our biocycle compost and mulch‌ magic for your garden At the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre we turn all the kerbside waste from green-lidded organics bins into compost and mulch that we sell back to the public. The compost and mulch is rich in nutrients and is truly magic for any garden or farm. Importantly, by turning our community’s waste into compost and mulch, we are closing the loop on our organics recycling. Recently we banned compostable nappies from green-lidded organics bins. This has enabled us to gain organic certification for our compost and mulch. We have now achieved this and it is suitable for use in organic gardens or on certified organic farms and agribusinesses. Compost and mulch is available for purchase at the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre weighbridge, with prices starting from $35 a cubic metre.
Innovation and technology Our first electric car – the future has arrived! Lismore City Council now has a 100% electric car. The Nissan Leaf does not use any fossil fuels and plugs into the wall at the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre so it can charge straight from the rooftop solar panels. The new car has lithium-ion batteries and can travel up to 170km on a full charge. It features a small solar panel on the rear spoiler which powers many of the interior accessories via a 12-volt battery. Some of the car parts are even made from old products including water bottles and plastic bags.
Our solar investment – free energy from the sun In 2014 we installed a 100kW solar photovoltaic system at the MRF, which powers 80% of the MRF's total power consumption. We also have two 20kW systems at the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre to reduce our electricity consumption and costs. It makes sense to take advantage of our large roof space and save money and emissions by using free energy from the sun.
Our phytocapping site – a NSW first In 2013 we opened the Wyrallah Road Phytocap Rehabilitation Site – the first licensed phytocap site in NSW. In essence, a phytocap is a complex layer of local native vegetation that controls drainage on old landfill sites, replacing the traditional method of capping, which involves the layering of clay, gravel and dirt. We have a 1.3-hectare phytocap site, which is planted chiefly with koala habitat species. As these grow, a diverse understory will be established. Phytocapping is around half the cost of standard landfill capping and increases existing koala habitat. All these measures are working toward the community’s vision of Lismore becoming a model of sustainability. They are also helping us move closer to our goal of generating all Council electricity from renewable resources by 2023.
Be a part of the recycling revolution! For more information contact the Waste Hotline on 1300 87 83 87.
www.northernriverswaste.com.au www.lismore.nsw.gov.au www.facebook.com/lismorecitycouncil
Printed on recycled, carbon-neutral paper.