Recycling has become a healthy habit for most Australian households, but despite our best efforts, around ten per cent of the items placed inside our household yellow bins don’t actually belong there.
Australia’s Biggest Recycling Plant: A Look Inside
Recycling is an important part of reducing our environmental impact and preserving the planet. In Australia, recycling is a priority for many households, but contamination of recyclable materials remains a common problem. To get a better understanding of what goes on inside the country’s biggest recycling plant, we visited the facility to profile its employees and machinery as they work to sort out contaminated materials.
The plant director shared with us his insights into the recycling process and tips for households to reduce contamination of recyclables. He explained that while Australians are keen to recycle their plastic, figures show that only 16% of the country’s plastic packaging was recycled or composted in 2019-20, down from 18% in 2018-19. This means that more than 80% of plastic packaging ended up in landfill or was incinerated.
Inside the facility, we observed how employees worked tirelessly to sort through contaminated materials such as food waste and non-recyclable items like polystyrene foam and chip packets. We also saw how advanced machinery was used to separate different types of recyclables such as paper, cardboard, glass bottles and cans. The plant director highlighted that this process helps reduce contamination levels by removing any non-recyclable items from the mix before it is sent off for processing.
The plant director also shared some tips for households on how they can reduce contamination levels when disposing their waste:
- Make sure all containers are empty before putting them in your recycling bin;
- Rinse out any containers with food residue;
- Avoid putting hazardous materials such as batteries or electronics in your recycling bin;
- Separate different types of recyclables into different bins; and
- Check with your local council about what can be recycled in your area.
Overall, visiting Australia’s biggest recycling plant and seeing first-hand how much effort goes into sorting through contaminated materials so they can be recycled properly. It is clear that proper disposal of our waste is essential if we want to ensure that our recyclables don’t end up in landfill or incineration sites. With this knowledge, we can all take steps towards reducing our environmental impact by following these simple tips for proper disposal of our waste.
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