Energy
Recycling makes used materials available again for the manufacturing of new products.
This often results in a more efficient use of both energy and raw materials (eg making aluminium from recovered aluminium cans and other aluminium scrap takes 95% less energy than using raw materials).
As a result, significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are achieved when recycled aluminium stock is used instead of virgin raw materials.
Australians recycle over two billion aluminium cans a year. The energy saved from this effort is enough to power 270,000 homes for one year, or all the homes in the Fraser Coast region for more than three years.
How can I help?
There are so many things that each and every person can do to help reduce rubbish. Simple things like rinsing and putting recyclable items in your recycle bin instead of the normal rubbish bin.
Here are the dos and don'ts of recycling:
RECYCLE
Place only these items in your
Recycling Bin | DON'T RECYCLE
Do not place these items in your
Recycling Bin |
| Glass - all glass bottles and jars, no matter what the colour or size | Ceramics - crockery, terracotta, ovenproof glass, safety and toughened glass, car windows, broken glass |
| Plastic - All softdrink and milk bottles, ice cream containers and containers marked with the recycling symbols | Plastic - plastic wrapping/packaging, plastic shopping bags |
| Aluminium & Steel (washed) - All aluminium and steel cans (eg. soft drink, pet food, baked bean cans). Also aerosol cans (no lids) | Garden & Household Waste - grass clippings, branches, food scraps, Tetra packs (poppers), milk cartons |
| Newspapers & Clean Cardboard - newspapers, magazines, juunk mail, phone books, all cardboard, birthday and Christmas cards | Hard Materials - concrete, rocks, bricks or timber |
| | Clothing - place clothing in community colleciton bins |
| | Lubrication Oil, Batteries - facilities are available at Council's Waste Disposal sites to dispose of used oil and batteries |
DO NOT put your recyclables in plastic bags, just place them loosely in your recycle bin.
When, shopping don’t forget to take your ‘green’ bags, this reduces the amount of plastic bags ending up in landfill (non biodegradable plastic bags can remain in the environment for up to 1000 years).
Green Waste - Up to 4m3 or 1 tonne of green waste can be disposed of at all Council tips and transfer stations free of charge. Branches, limbs and trunks are to be no more than 1200mm in length and 400mm in diameter. Anything outside of the above size may incur a disposal charge.
Liquid Waste - The only liquid waste accepted for recycling is Motor Oil and Cooking Oil. These can only be accepted at the Granville, Maryborough and Tinana Tips. Gatehouse staff can advise upon arriving at the tip for directions as to where the oil can be placed.
Mobile Phones -Old mobile phones can be recycled at the Maryborough Waste Disposal Site, Saltwater Creek Road and the Fraser Coast Recycling Centre, Aalborg Road, Nikenbah. Gatehouse staff can direct residents to the relevant section for disposal.
FAQs - Plastic Recycling
Q: There are different numbers on different plastic containers. What does that mean?
A: The numbers relate to the type of plastic it is and the recycling process required. You can put plastics with the numbers 1, 2 and 5 in the recycling bin.
Q: Should I remove the lids before putting plastic containers in the Recycling Bin?
A: Yes. Remove all lids, as they are often a different kind of plastic to the actual container. Different types of plastics require different ways of being processed during recycling. The lids can still be put in your recycle bin, just put them in loosely, or put them in the general waste bin.
Q: Should I wash out my plastic containers before I put them in the Recycling Bin?
A: Yes. Rinse all plastic containers in your old dishwashing water at the end of washing up. This ensures the plastic is clean for recycling, does not smell for the people working at the recycling facility and saves water, too.
Q: Should I take the label off the plastic container before I put it in the recycling bin?
A: No, there is no need. The paper will come off during the recycling process.
Q: Plastic containers take up so much space, my recycling bin gets full before the fortnightly collection. What should I do?
A: Squash the plastic containers before placing them in the recycling bin. You should also squash cardboard boxes flat. Place all recyclables in the bin loosely – not in plastic bags (which are not recyclable).
Tours
Tours of Hervey Bay’s Material Recovery Facility (Recycling Centre) are available to groups and individuals. See first hand what happens to your recycled materials. Phone 1300 79 49 29 for more information.
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