Recycling on Redlands Coast
Let's Get it Sorted top results
In 2025, you made some big changes to your recycling habits, let's maintain the momentum.
- 7% increase in 5-star recyclers with zero contamination
- 89% of households a 4 or 5-star rating after bin checks
- Change seen in the top contaminants with 27% more households putting soft plastics in red-lid bins and 23% more households keeping their recycling loose
- Highly contaminated recycling bins decreased by 3%
- Almost 2% decrease in recyclables lost to landfill
Top ways to reduce contamination
While contamination reduced after bin checks, there is still opportunity to focus on the top three actions:
❌ No plastic packets, wrappers and bags
👉 Place in your red lid bin or search drop-offs below
❌ No recycling in bags
👉 Empty loose into your yellow lid bin
❌ No bagged general waste
👉 Place in your red lid bin
Stay up to date with your recycling knowledge
Search items to find recycling and disposal options in the Recycle Mate widget below. Download the Recycle Mate app for a go-to recycling guide.
What goes in your recycling bin?
✅ Paper and cardboard
Printed paper, magazines, egg cartons, toilet rolls, cereal and pizza boxes, milk and juice cartons, wrapping paper, newspapers, cardboard boxes
Tip: flatten large cardboard packaging so it can fit in your recycling bin and be emptied by the recycling truck.
✅ Glass bottles and jars
Empty drink and oil bottles, jam and sauce jars
Tip: keep lids on. A small amount of residue is ok.
✅ Hard plastic containers
Empty milk and juice bottles, shampoo and conditioner bottles, detergent and soap bottles, ice cream and yoghurt tubs, fruit punnets
Tip: Keep lids on
✅ Steel tins
Empty food and pet food tins
Tip: You can wipe out oil to keep your bin clean and remember a small amount of residue is ok.
✅ Aluminium cans, trays and foil
Drink cans, empty aerosols, pie trays, foil scrunched in a ball
What can't go in your recycling bin?
These contaminants can cause damage and safety risks in the collection and sorting process.
IMPORTANT: Gas bottles, batteries, paint, oil, EPIRBS, flares, chemicals, asbestos and ash should not be placed in any bin. Check the hazardous waste webpage for further details.
❌ Plastic packets, wrappers and bags
Place in your general waste bin or recycle through speciality programs. Search Recycle Mate for options.
❌ Bagged waste
General waste only goes in your red-lid waste bin. If you need more bin space, order an additional general waste bin and keep recycling out of landfill.
❌ Bagged recycling
Empty recyclables loose into your recycling bin. Plastic and paper bags aren't emptied through the sorting process.
❌ Rigid plastics (Tupperware, tubs, toys)
Place broken items in your general waste bin.
❌ Clothes and textiles
Place unwearable items in your general waste bin or donate reusable items to charity.
❌ Electronic and electrical items (e-waste)
❌ Glassware (broken wine glasses, mirror)
Place in your general waste bin.
For a comprehensive list of items, see the A-Z of waste and recycling.
Top recycling tips
- Set up a separate container for recyclables in your kitchen
- Make sure items are mostly empty - residue is ok
- Empty your recycling loose into your yellow-lid bin
- Order a larger recycling bin if you need more space for a one-off $30 fee.
Recycle more
- Use the A-Z guide of waste and recycling to check which bin to use or where to take something
- Recycle items that can’t go in your recycling bin like blister packs and beauty products through the Recycling Station at IndigiScapes
- You can recycle larger household items such as appliances, gas bottles, bricks and concrete, clean soil and scrap metal at a Recycling and Waste Centre
- Drop-off reusable items at Redland Bay Recycling and Waste Centre's RecycleWorld.
Let’s keep recycling out of landfill
Keeping recycling out of landfill and reducing contamination in recycling bins is an important step in how we manage our waste as we head towards a zero waste future.
Recent waste audits have shown we can divert around 16 per cent, 6,300 tonnes of recycling from the red-lid bin to the yellow-lid bin. At the same time, we can also reduce the 15 per cent, 1,300 tonnes in the yellow-lid bin that should go in the red-lid bin. It’s clear that improving our recycling habits is a crucial step towards reducing landfill waste and managing costs.
Meet our recycling truck driver, Beau, and learn about his day and why keeping recyclables out of landfill is important.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s)
What happens to my recycling?
Once your recycling is collected, it’s transported to a recycling facility where it’s sorted into different types of materials, cleaned and processed for remanufacturing. The materials can then be remade into new products, reducing the need for raw materials and helping to conserve natural resources.
Why should I care about what goes in my recycling bin?
Getting our recycling right helps to conserve resources, reduce waste sent to landfill, and ensure that materials can be remade into new products. By following the recycling guidelines, you're helping to protect the environment and contribute to a sustainable future for Redlands Coast.
What is contamination?
Contamination in recycling bins occurs when non-recyclable materials, such as plastic bags, food waste, or electronic items which cannot be processed by kerbside recycling facilities, are placed in the recycling bin. These contaminants disrupt the recycling process and make it harder for recyclables to be reused.
What do I do with the items I can’t put in my recycling bin?
Your bin tag will identify any items that can’t go in your recycling bin. Most of these items need to go in your red-lid general waste bin or taken to your local Recycling and Waste Centre, except for some hazardous waste items. Hazardous waste (including batteries, any items containing batteries and gas bottles), can’t go in any bin as these items can cause safety risks including fires in trucks. Find out where to take specific items on the Hazardous waste webpage.
What's wrong with recycling in paper bags?
Recycling that’s contained, even in a paper bag, can’t be guaranteed to be emptied through the collection and sorting process. Bags aren’t opened, sending recycling efforts to waste. Using a paper bag is a handy way to collect your recyclables. Empty your recyclables loose into the yellow-lid bin and pop the bag in separately.
What is hazardous waste and why can’t I put it in my bin?
Hazardous waste is any material which can pose a health or safety risk by being placed in a bin and emptied by a truck. This includes electronic waste, batteries, gas bottles, paint, oil, EPIRBS, flares, chemicals, asbestos and ash. These items cause damage and health and safety issues including fires. Find out how to dispose of hazardous waste.