Rubbish—everyone deals with it in one form or another.
While a handful of people mindlessly toss away their garbage without considering the consequences, some among us feel a great sense of responsibility for sorting trash the right way.
If you fall under the latter category, pat yourself on the back—you’re doing great.
However, if you find yourself less familiar with the ins and outs of proper waste disposal, there’s no need to fret.
This article is here to guide you through the basics and provide you with all you need to know to become better at sorting, recycling, and managing your trash.
Where Does My General Waste Go?
In most countries, there’s typically a standardised colour scheme that depicts what type of trash goes where.
In Australia, dark green or black bins with a red lid, commonly known as general waste bins, are designated for materials that cannot be recycled or composted.
What’s General Waste?
General wastes refer to rubbish found around the house that’s not hazardous and not recyclable.
This includes various items around the house, such as baking paper, biscuit trays, meat trays, dust, cigarette butts, plastic cling wrap, coffee cups, and lids.
Furthermore, some forms of commercial trash such as pill packaging, rubber bands, string and twine, wipes, cutlery, tissue paper, and straws also make up this type of garbage. Pet poop also falls under this category.
This aforementioned rubbish can be thrown in any red-lidded bin in Australia, including major cities such as Sydney, Canberra, and Adelaide.
Where to Throw Food Wastage?
Food waste is also covered under general waste. This consists of both household scraps and scraps from restaurants, supermarkets, and food stalls.
Food waste makes up a big bulk of the waste generated by Australians and humans in general. In fact, 35% of Australian household waste is food waste.
That said, instead of chucking your scraps in a general waste bin, it’s significantly better for the health of the environment to throw food waste in green lids meant for food waste.
This way, you’ll be reducing your carbon footprint since the waste will be composted and utilised and not end up in landfills.
How to Deal With Plastic Bags?
Following the recent collapse of REDCycle in Melbourne due to inefficient soft-plastic processing systems, many locals from the city and nationwide are on the lookout for alternative ways to recycle their plastic waste.
The primary reason why plastic bags pose a big environmental challenge is that, unlike other types of general waste, this type of trash holds unique properties. Waste disposal Bury can offer advice on all aspects of waste management.
Firstly, their non-biodegradable nature makes them hard to eliminate. It typically takes these types of trash a thousand years before they degrade in a landfill.
That said, progress has been made for some plastic material types to degrade in a shorter timeframe.
But even with a shorter timeframe, there are still inherent environmental risks rooted in the degradation process. Once plastics start to decompose, they break down into microplastics that get absorbed by the soil and waterways.
This can come into contact with land animals and wildlife, interfering with their health. These animals can further make their way into our stomachs.
And upon consumption of plastics, this can lead to an increased risk of health problems, such as certain cancers.
As such, it’s best to deal with this waste appropriately by using recyclable bags instead of relying solely on plastic bags.
Where to Throw Glass and Thin Sheets of Aluminium Waste?
Glass waste and plastic containers containing numbers 1 to 7 should be disposed of in yellow-lidded bins throughout Australia.
These plastic containers include lidded plastic bottles (for instance, milk and tomato juice), shampoo containers, margarine containers, and washing detergent bottles. These forms of rubbish should be emptied before getting thrown in this bin, especially for commercial waste disposal.
Aluminium cans and aerosol cans are also meant to be placed in these bins.
For instance, clear, green, and brown coloured glass should be thrown in these designated yellow-lid bins. Broken mirrors and poison bottles, however, should not be thrown in this bin.
Where to Throw Newspapers and Cardboard?
Newspaper waste and compressed cardboard boxes should be thrown in blue bins.
When it comes to cardboard, this also includes all sizes of juice and milk cartons. Boxes meant for discarding should be flattened before being thrown in this bin.
Where to Throw Gardening Waste?
Gardeners have their own designated rubbish bins to throw their waste. This is the green bin for waste disposal Liverpool.
Leaves, weeds, trimmings, prunings, and nuts should be thrown in this coloured bin. Branches over 100 cm in diameter and 30 cm in length should be cut down into smaller pieces.
Although they sort of resemble garden waste, soil, logs, and timber are not meant to be thrown in this bin class. Organic waste from the kitchen like food scraps is also not accepted.
3 Additional Trash Management Tips Before Disposal
When it comes to proper waste disposal practices, it’s important to know and follow the right approaches.
While commendable, it’s not enough to simply sort your trash properly in the right bins.
Proper waste disposal practices can be done by adhering to the following:
1. Lifestyle Change
Actively striving to adopt a less excessive lifestyle is a good method to reduce your environmental impact.
For instance, you can carry along with you reusable tote bags instead of relying on single-use plastic bags.
You can also choose to shop in brands that are environmentally friendly and less prone to generating excess waste through packaging and the like.
2. Embrace Reuse
Before disposing of a piece of trash, ask yourself if it can serve another purpose or be given to someone else.
Many items, such as clothing, furniture, and wood can be repurposed, donated, or even sold.
For instance, a shirt you’ve outgrown can be given to your nephew or younger cousin. A flip-top bottle from a beverage store can be made into a home water container.
There are also many DIY projects you can undertake using recyclable materials. The choice is yours!
3. Get Expert Assistance
If you are dealing with hazardous waste or trash not previously mentioned, get in touch with a rubbish removal specialist, such as one here that caters to Brisbane residents.
These rubbish removal specialists are equipped with the expertise and tools to properly dispose of any type of rubbish. By relying on them, you’ll gain peace of mind knowing that your items are all properly segregated.
Thank you for reading.
