A person putting a glass bottle in their recycling bin

What can I put in each bin

Click on the tabs below to find out  what can go in each bin. You can also check out our A-Z waste guide to find out how you can dispose or recycle your unwanted items.

 

FOGO bin

If you can eat it or it is part of something that can grow, it is FOGO (Food Organics and Garden Organics). If you're not sure, you can check the list below.

You will also get a kitchen caddy sent out to you  to help you make the most of the FOGO service. Place food scraps into your kitchen caddy and regularly empty it into your FOGO bin.

An information pack has been sent to you with your kitchen caddy.  If you need a copy, you can download the Recycling and Waste Guide 2023 Booklet. (PDF, 2MB)  See the FAQs for more information on how to use your kitchen caddy.

If you receive a new FOGO bin, please do not put it out for collection prior to 2 October 2023.
If you already have a lime green lidded green waste bin, please don’t put food scraps in it prior to 25 September 2023.

What can I put in my FOGO bin?

  • Council-supplied compostable kitchen caddy liners meet the Australian Standards of AS4736 and AS5810 and are coloured bright green.

    (additional liners can be requested from Council free of charge)

  • Fruit and vegetable scraps
  • Meat and bones (raw and cooked)
  • Eggs and dairy
  • Seafood and soft seafood shells including fish, prawns and lobster 
  • Bread, pasta, rice, and cereal
  • Loose tea leaves and coffee grounds
  • Tissues and paper towel
  • Plate scrapings and leftovers
  • Human and pet hair
  • Wooden items - Toothpicks, skewers, icy pole sticks, chopsticks and coffee stirrers
  • Paper straws
  • Napkins
  • Disposable wooden cutlery
  • Nuts, grains, and seeds
  • Desserts, pastries, and cakes
  • Leaves
  • Grass clippings
  • Small branches and logs (up to 10cm in diameter and 40cm in length)
  • Sticks and twigs
  • Common weeds and flowers
  • Garden clippings.

What can't go in FOGO bin

  • Compostable/Biodegradable liners not supplied by Yarra Ranges Council
  • All food packaging including fruit stickers, elastic bands, and plastic wrap/cling wrap
  • Compostable or biodegradable packaging 
  • Nappies and sanitary items including those labelled as biodegradable or compostable
  • Animal waste and kitty litter 
  • Textiles and fabric, including natural fibres
  • Hard seafood shells, including oyster shells and clam shells 
  • Liquids including cooking oil and milk
  • Teabags and coffee pods
  • Treated and painted timber
  • Ash, rocks, and soil
  • Bricks and building materials 
  • Disposable baby and makeup wipes, including those labelled as biodegradable or compostable 
  • Plastic items and plastic bags 
  • Polystyrene 
  • Metals and wire 
  • Gardening items, including plant pots, gardening tools, garden hoses. 
  • Noxious weeds

Things to remember

  • Please do not overload your bin or make it too heavy and ensure that the lid can be fully closed. Our trucks have a 75kg weight capacity. If your bin is too heavy or overfull, you may receive a sticker on your bin notifying you that your collection could not be completed.
  • Larger households or those producing extra waste can choose to order an additional bin. Additional fees will apply.

Recycling bin

Many household items can be placed into your recycling bin, including:

  • Pizza boxes, cardboard takeaway containers, egg cartons
  • Plastic bottles (with lids), containers, trays, CD/DVD covers
  • Glass bottles and jars (including lids)
  • Steel cans, aerosol cans, aluminium cans, clean aluminium foil (scrunched into loose ball), pie trays
  • Paint tins – ensure they are dry and empty

These items may come from your kitchen (food packaging), bathroom (medicine bottles, makeup jars), laundry (cleaning product bottles) or shed (cardboard boxes, paint tins).

Please ensure that all items are emptied of their contents and placed loose into your bin (not in plastic bags).

What not to put in your recycling bin

  • Plastic bags and wrapping
  • Food or garden waste
  • Waxed cardboard
  • Items that are battery operated or have a power cord
  • Batteries of any kind
  • Polystyrene, foam meat trays
  • Glassware, crockery, pyrex, light bulbs, window glass or mirrors
  • Rubbish, nappies
  • DVDs, CDs, cassette or video tapes
  • Gas cylinders
  • Printer cartridges
  • Coffee cups or lids
  • Syringes

Many items can be recycled, even though they can’t be placed into your recycling bin collected by council. To find out more about how to recycle other items, including textiles, batteries, x-rays, polystyrene and electronic waste, please visit our https://www.yarraranges.vic.gov.au/waste.

Things to remember

  • Please do not overload your bin or make it too heavy and ensure that the lid can be fully closed.

  • Our trucks have a 75kg weight capacity. If your bin is too heavy or overfull, you may receive a sticker on your bin notifying you that your collection could not be completed.

  • Your recycling bin will be collected fortnightly.

  • Larger households or those producing extra waste that cannot be avoided e.g., nappies or medical waste, can choose to order an additional bin. Additional fees will apply.

Rubbish bin

Most small household items that can’t be placed into your recycling or FOGO bin can go into your rubbish bin.

This includes:

  • Plastic packaging, food wrappers, cling wrap and other plastics that can’t go into your recycling bin
  • Biodegradable and compostable bags (other than those provided by council for the FOGO collection)
  • Coffee cups and lids
  • Nappies, wipes and sanitary items
  • Polystyrene and foam meat trays
  • Window glass, glassware, mirrors and pyrex
  • Animal waste and kitty litter
  • Plant pots, broken hoses and gardening tools
  • Coat hangers, clothing and textiles that cannot be donated
  • Broken toys, household items that are not electronic 

What not to put in your rubbish bin

Further information on how to dispose of hazardous waste and electronic waste can be found at https://www.yarraranges.vic.gov.au/waste

Things to remember

  • Please do not overload your bin or make it too heavy and ensure that the lid can be fully closed.
  • Our trucks have a 75kg weight capacity. If your bin is too heavy or overfull, you may receive a sticker on your bin notifying you that your collection could not be completed.
  • Your rubbish bin will be collected fortnightly.
  • Larger households or those producing extra waste that cannot be avoided e.g., nappies or medical waste, can choose to order an additional bin. Additional fees will apply.

 

 

 

 

 

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