Did you know soft plastics are not accepted in kerbside yellow-top recycling bins?
Soft plastics cannot be processed at Material Recovery Facilities because they jam the automated sorting machines, meaning they are a contaminate in your recycling bin.
To dispose of soft plastics, please drop them at a REDcycle collection point at your local Woolworths or Coles, or place them in the garbage bin. Do not put them in your kerbside recycling bin.
Remember, if it is soft, it is plastic and it can be scrunched in a ball in your hand then it can be recycled at a REDcycle collection or disposed of in the garbage bin. To be recycled at a REDcycle collection point, the plastic must be dry and empty but small bits of paper such as price stickers and labels can be left on.
Examples of soft plastics include:
• Plastic bags, post satchels and bubble wrap
• Chip, sweets, and biscuit packaging
• Cling wrap or plastic film
• Bread, pasta, or cereal packages
• Ziplock bags and pet food bags
To find out more about what can go into soft plastic bins, visit the REDcycle website.
Once collected, soft plastics are processed at a REDcycle facility then delivered to one of three Australian manufacturers to be made into various materials such as furniture, bollards, signage or as an asphalt additive. You can learn more about how soft plastics are recycled here.
For more information on what can and can’t go in your yellow-lid recycling bin, visit Council’s Waste Sorting Guide.