Let’s Get It Sorted
This program has been developed to reduce landfill issues by improving recycling rates across the Balonne Shire.
The Balonne Shire Let’s Get It Sorted (LGIS) Program will run between May and September 2025 and includes:
• Community education program (social media and print)
• Yellow lid bin stickers providing recycling guidance
• Audit of yellow lid bin collections at end of program period.
How to use your bins at home
For an overview of waste and recycling in the Balonne Shire, please view the rest of the information in the drop-down boxes in the General Waste and Recycling Guidelines on Council’s website.
Recycling Bin
The easiest way to work out what can and can’t be recycled in the Balonne Shire…
Recycle Mate is Australia’s leading national recycling education platform. You can download the Recycle Mate app for free. Once you’ve downloaded the app, you can take a photo of the item you’re unsure about and the app will tell you which bin the item should put in…easy!
If you don’t want to download the app, you can visit their website, enter your location and the item you want to check. The website will tell you which bin your item should be placed in.
Download the Recycle Mate app today.
What can go in the yellow lid bin?
• Glass containers (empty and with lids removed), including jars and bottles
• Paper and cardboard (clean, not shredded, with tape removed) including pizza boxes, egg cartons, drink cartons (lids removed), office paper and glossy magazines
• Hard plastic bottles and containers (empty and with lids removed) including drink bottles, shampoo bottles, yogurt and ice cream tubs. Remember if it can be scrunched into a ball it’s soft, if it holds its shape, it’s hard.
• Steel containers (empty) including tin food cans or pet food tins
• Aluminium foil, cans and aerosols (empty and scrunch foil into a ball)
What can’t go in the yellow lid bin?
• Bagged recyclables – all recycling must be loose and not placed in a bag
• Soft plastics – remember if it can be scrunched into a ball it’s soft, if it holds it’s shape it’s hard.
• Food or garden waste
• Clothes and textiles
• Batteries and hazardous waste
• Electronic items like mobile phones, TVs and anything that contains a battery.
What can go in the red lid general waste bin?
• General household waste
• Sanitary items, including nappies, tissues and wet wipes
• Broken household items
What can't go in the red lid general waste bin?
• Recyclables
• Liquids
• Hazardous, chemical or medical waste (including batteries, electronics, paints, oils, gas bottles)
• Building material
• Car parts
• Heavy items like rocks or concrete
Frequently asked questions
Why can’t I put recyclable items in general waste?
Most people don't think much about what happens to rubbish after they throw it away. But the reality of rubbish is that nothing ever fully goes away.
We all need to play our part in actively reducing the amount of waste going to our active landfill sites.
Identifying and establishing new landfill sites is extremely expensive, it can also take up to 5 - 10 years to navigate legislative requirements. There are also significant environmental and safety challenges associated with putting recyclable items in the general waste bins.
Recycling is confusing! Is there an easy way to work out what can and can’t be recycled?
Recycle Mate is Australia’s leading national recycling education platform. You can download the Recycle Mate app for free. Once you’ve downloaded the app, you can take a photo of the item you’re unsure about and the app will tell you which bin the item should put in…easy!
If you don’t want to download the app, you can visit the Recycle Mate website, enter your location and the item you want to check. The website will tell you which bin your item should be placed in.
Bottles and containers… lids on or off?
In the Balonne Shire, we need to remove lids from all containers, bottles and jars. Lids need to be placed in the general waste bin.
Do I need to rinse before recycling?
Recyclable items do need to be empty and have scraps removed before they go into the yellow lid bin, this includes jars, food containers and pizza boxes. Sometimes the quickest and easiest way to remove scraps is to give the item a quick rinse.
What is contamination?
When general waste items are put in the recycling bin, they make it more difficult to sort. This is called contamination.
Putting general waste items in recycling bins can cause safety issues for staff, damage the machinery, and contaminate recyclable materials. This lowers the quality of the recycling and makes it more difficult to process and sell the materials collected.
This initiative is supported by the Queensland Government’s Recycling and Jobs Fund.
To find out more visit Let’s Get It Sorted (LGIS) Partnership Program.