Fortnightly kerbside recycling commenced in the Shire of Manjimup from 4 Jan 2010 in Manjimup in conjunction with the normal bin day, and other communities the service commenced  1 Jan 2010.  To view the calendar, <<click here>>.

General Information about the kerbside recycling service
Dear Resident,

Council resolved to implement the introduction of a recycling service in response to community demand and the concerning yearly increase of waste being received at the Ralston Road Landfill site.  The average increase of waste at the Ralston Landfill Site since 2004-05 has been 7.3% per year; most of this waste is packaging waste.  With good recycling practices by residents it is possible to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill by 25%.
Correct recycling prevents contamination of recyclables with waste that is hazardous or particularly unpleasant for sorting staff. Unfortunately, where a recycling bin has been contaminated, it results in all the recyclables being rejected and unnecessarily sent to landfill.

• The Shire of Manjimup’s Kerbside Recycling Service commenced 1 January 2010.
• Recycling bins with yellow lids have been distributed to everyone who currently has a green domestic rubbish bin collection (see notes).
• A description of items suitable for collection is hot stamped on the front of each bin.
• A fridge magnet with area collection times is distributed at the begining of each year.
• Place your yellow topped recycling bin out once a fortnight on the same day as your normal rubbish bin collection.

Note

• Rural residents will not receive a bin.
• If you are do not currently receive a domestic and recycling collection service you are not paying for waste disposal in your rates.  Disposal costs at waste transfer stations or the main landfill at Ralston Road will apply.  
• The service is for co-mingled recyclables – everything goes in the same bin – do not put recyclables in plastic bags. 

The recycling collection will only take the following;

• Paper and cardboard.
• Glass bottles and jars – rinsed with lids removed.
• Aluminium cans and foil.
• Steel cans – rinsed.
• Plastic – milk, juice and soft drink bottles – rinsed lids removed (includes polyethylene (PET), polyvinyl (PVC) and high density polyethylene (HDPE).
• Milk and juice cartons – rinsed. 

The collection will not take:

• Clothing – Please take unwanted clean clothing to Good Sammy’s or Vinnies.
• Batteries – Car batteries are accepted free at all waste disposal sites.
• Polystyrene – un-recyclable in rural areas.
• Plastic bags- take back to Coles or Woolworth’s.
• Any liquids or chemicals – Dangerous to staff sorting recyclables.
• Rubber – not yet recyclable.
• Paint – contaminates collected recyclables.
• Electronic equipment – take to waste disposal sites – charges apply.
• Mobile phones – take to Post Office – waste disposal sites –no charge.
• Shoes- take good shoes to Vinnies or Good Sammys.
• Any food scraps – compost, feed to chooks or worm farm.
• Greenwaste (lawn clippings and prunings) compost or take to waste disposal sites. 

General
 

• All collected recyclables will be sorted at the material recovery facility (MRF) in Gandy St Manjimup – currently collected recyclables from Bridgetown-Greenbushes, Nannup and rural bulk recycling bins from the Shire of Manjimup are being processed at that site.
• The sorting staff at the MRF would appreciate compliance by residents with what they place in the recycling bins. Food scraps in recycling bins result in an unpleasant environment for sorting staff and can cause rejection of contaminated recyclables.
• All collected recyclables are currently processed and sent to markets in Perth. This presently includes glass, paper cardboard and plastics. Paper / cardboard and aluminium cans are baled and most plastics are granulised (pelletised) and placed in bulk bags.
• No collected recyclables will be taken to landfill unless contaminated.  

Tips on How to Recycle Right
 

• Take your plastic bags to your local supermarket for recycling. Keep them out of your home recycling - plastic bags can cause problems when placed in your kerbside recycling bin. For safety reasons, staff at the recycling centre cannot open plastic bags as the contents may be dangerous or dirty; they are sent to landfill. Bags also interfere with the automatic sorting machines, and can bring the entire sorting station to a halt. To avoid these problems simply put your recyclable items straight into the recycling bin.
• Remove the lids from your plastic bottles, rinse (preferably with left over dishwashing water) and make sure they are empty before you place them in your recycling bin. Doing this prevents liquid spilling and ruining other recyclable products or damaging the equipment at the recycling centre. Place plastic bottle tops in your rubbish bin, since they are too small to be recycled.
• If you have broken glass or ceramics like ovenproof dishes, drinking glasses or mugs, throw these in your rubbish bin. If they end up in your recycling bin, they will contaminate the recyclable glass bottles. Just 15g of ovenproof glass can contaminate one tonne of normal glass, making it useless for recycling.
• Australians are great at recycling aluminium drink cans. However one in three cans is still not recycled. If you're out at a picnic or barbeque, remember to take your cans home with you to be recycled.
• Reduce food waste by making a meal plan and shopping list, and buying to the list. Financially and environmentally it's better to buy more later if you need it, than to waste what you have too much of. On average 33% of the contents of Sulo bins in Australia is food scraps.  Make other meals with your leftovers, and recycle your food scraps with a compost heap, worm farm or bokashi bucket. Worm farms and compost bins are available from Council or local hardware stores.
• Steel twist tops and jam jar lids can also be recycled, but they are too small to go straight in the recycling bin. The best way to recycle them is to collect them in an empty steel can and squeeze the top closed. Then the can with the tops inside can go into the recycling bin.

Council kerbside collections aren't the only way to recycle; there are many other recycling programs that collect other items. These include:

• Printer Cartridges: All types and brands can be recycled via the 'Cartridges 4 Planet Ark' recycling boxes in participating Australia Post and Officeworks stores.  Visit cartridges PlanetArk.org for more information.
• Corks: Guides Australia collects wine and champagne corks nationally through a network of individuals and collection points at hotels, restaurants and supermarkets.
• Mobile Phones: These can be recycled via most mobile phone outlets and at the main Council office and waste disposal sites.
• Plastic Shopping Bags: These can be recycled at most major supermarkets.

Please be aware that Council provides a bulk bin recycling service at the main landfill site in Manjimup and at the Waste transfer stations at Walpole, Northcliffe and Pemberton.  From 1 January 2010 some disposal charges will apply.

For any questions or queries or additional copies of this information sheet, please contact the Waste Management Officer, Klaus Mueller on 9771 7743 or email klaus.mueller@manjimup.wa.gov.au.