National Recycling Week 11–17 November
Do you know your recycling rights from your wrongs? Brush up on your recycling knowledge this National Recycling Week by following some helpful myth-busting tips.
Recycle right
- Look for the Australasian Recycling Labels (ARLs)
ARLs remove confusion around recycling and are relevant to Australian recycling streams. Trust only an ARL when looking for a recycling label on an item, not plastic resin codes.
- If in doubt, leave it out.
Don’t be a wish-cycler! Putting something in the yellow bin in the hope that it will be recycled can ruin your recycling efforts.
Leave out
- Disposable coffee cups
Coffee cups can’t be recycled in regular mixed recycling streams. Put yours in the red landfill bin.
- Plastic bags and soft plastics
Recyclable items should be placed in recycling bins loose, not inside a plastic bag. Plastic bags and soft plastics cause problems at recycling facilities and cannot be processed through regular mixed recycling streams.
- Batteries and other e-waste
Any item with a plug, battery or power cord can contain hazardous and valuable materials, which don’t belong in the recycling. Visit Sustainability Victoria or Sustainable Campus to find out where to dispose of e-waste.
- Food
Empty and clean recyclable items before placing them in the recycling.
Why recycle?
Amid the recent recycling crisis in Australia, many of us have started to wonder: do our recycling efforts make an impact? What happens to the items we put into our recycling bins and where do they end up?
More than half of Australia's waste gets recycled: that’s 55% of all waste collected from households, businesses and construction. But this relies on the efforts of every individual. If you place the right things in your recycling bin, it is very likely they will get recycled.
Everyone has a vital role in the efficiency and success of our recycling systems, so make sure your efforts don’t go to waste and put the right thing in the bin!
Take the Recycle Right quiz now to test your new knowledge.
For more information on recycling at the University of Melbourne, visit Recycling and Waste.