Waste Collection

Assisted Bin Service

If you have trouble moving your bin to and from the kerbside for collection due to permanent or temporary immobility you can apply for the Assisted Bin Service. As part of this service, on your usual bin day the driver will collect your bin from outside your residence, take it to the truck to empty and then return it. To apply for the Assisted Bin Service, first make an appointment with your doctor who will determine if it is required. Ask your doctor to provide a letter confirming your need of the service and send to the City of Albany along with the completed Assisted Bin Service Application Form. Once confirmed and approved the City of Albany will advise you of the commencement date for the service. Please contact the Waste Team on 6820 3000 for more information. 

What can I put in my bins?

Albany's bin system is a FOGO (Food Organics & Garden Organics) service, which means you can put your food waste with your garden prunings in your lime green lidded bin. For more information, visit the FOGO page. 

Use our handy 'How to sort your waste' guide - pop it on your fridge for easy reference! Also available in Italian, Filipino and Karen.

FOGO

Organic waste from your lime-green lidded FOGO bin is a valuable resource. The contents of this bin are transported to a local facility and composted before being added to soil improvers for agricultural use.

Please use your FOGO bin for

• All food waste, including fruit and vegetable scraps; cooked food; meat, bones and seafood; dairy; egg shells; coffee grounds and tea leaves.
• Grass clippings
• Leaves and weeds
• Garden prunings (up to 15cm thick and 75cm long).
• Pet poo
• Soiled paper and cardboard; used tissues, napkins and paper towels
• Shredded paper

Only organic waste must be placed in this bin. Placing incorrect items in the bin is called contamination. Contamination can prevent your FOGO waste from being processed into compost, destining it to landfill instead. Make sure you give your FOGO waste the best chance of becoming compost by avoiding contamination.

For more information, visit the FOGO page.

Recycling

Keep your recycling simple and remember only 5 things go in your yellow-lidded recycling bin:

• Glass bottles and jars (lids removed)
• Cans
• Plastic bottles and containers (lids removed)
• Paper
• Cardboard (flattened)

Items must be rinsed, lids removed and loose in the bin. 

For more information, visit the Recycling page.

General Waste

Use your general waste bin for items that can't be composted or recycled, including

• Damaged items (e.g. clothing and ceramics)
• Packaging (including polysterene)
• Nappies and hygiene products
• Soft plastics 

Check out our handy Tips to Reduce Waste to make the most of the space in your general waste bin and do your bit to reduce what we send to landfill. 

Some things don't go in any bin!

Some items MUST NOT go in any of your household bins. Household hazardous waste (HHW) includes unwanted products that are corrosive, flammable, toxic or reactive. They are often things that are harmful to you, your family, your pets or the environment, and shouldn't go in any kerbside bin. 

HHW items include:

• Batteries
• E-waste (TV, computers, printers & cartridges, mobile phones)
• Light globes
• Paint
• Aerosol cans
• Chemicals and poisons
• Gas bottles
• Fire extinguishers
• Flares

You can drop off household quantities of these items at Fossicker's Tip Shop at the Hanrahan Road Waste Facility for no charge (from households only). These items will then be collected and recycled or safely disposed of.

Did you know? Lithium batteries cause fires in rubbish trucks and waste facilities! Help keep our facilities and staff safe, and take batteries to a drop off point instead of putting them in your bin. 

For more information on Household Hazardous Waste check out the website.

Looking after your bins

It is the property owner's responsibility to provide and maintain kerbside bins for their property. Bins are not provided by the City, but can be purchased from Plastics Plus or Cleanaway who also sell spare parts such as lids, wheels, axles and pins. We've got some handy tips for how to care for your bin here.

If you buy a new bin for household waste collection, or a replacement lid, please ensure it complies with Australian Standards as follows:

• General Waste: 140L capacity, dark green or black base with a red lid
• Recycling: 240L capacity, green base with a yellow lid
• Green Waste: 240L capacity, dark green or black base with a lime-green lid. 

Tips for a longer lid life

Expected bin life is about 10 years. The blue general waste bins at many properties were distributed in 2004, while many recycle bins are around 20 years old - so wear and tear is to be expected. Most of the blue general waste bins have an anti-slap rib which was designed to decrease noise during bin collection. Unfortunately, the anti-slap rib puts extra stress on the bin hinge making it more prone to breaking off. You can easily cut off the rib with a hacksaw to reduce the likelihood of your lid breaking. You can find photo instructions here. Another common cause of lid breakage is when the pins holding the lid on wriggle out from one side, causing the other side to snap off during collection. Check the pins are secure to avoid this. 

Bulk verge collections

The City of Albany provides verge collections for bigger household items and larger volumes of garden waste. 

Bulk Green Waste Collections are held every year. The next Bulk Green Waste Collection will be held in 2024 on dates to be advised.  Residents with a regular kerbside bin service (excluding Cheynes Beach) can place up to two 6x4 trailer loads (or two cubic metres) of green waste on the verge on the advertised collection dates. 

Bulk Hard Waste Collections are held every two years. The next Bulk Hard Waste Collection will be held in 2025 on dates to be advised. Residents with a regular kerbside bin service (excluding Cheynes Beach) can place up to two 6x4 trailer loads (or two cubic metres) or hard waste on the verge on the advertised collection dates.

Please make sure you do not place waste on your verge outside of scheduled collections. Dates for your area will be provided in a flyer delivered to households. Waste placed on the verge outside of scheduled collections may result in a litter infringement notice. 

Waste Passes: Passes for the free disposal of bulk hard waste and green waste from households are provided to rural residential ratepayers with their annual rates notice. If you are renting please contact your Property Manager to ask for the passes for your residence.

Public place bins

The City of Albany maintains a network of public place bins in key locations around the City. Public place bins are provided for recreational use. Using public place bins for household or commercial waste is prohibited. Please protect our beautiful environment and do not overfill public place bins. Remember if it's not in the bin, it's littering! If you see a bin that's overflowing or needs some other attention, please let us know via our Report It or by calling 6820 3000.

Commercial waste

The City of Albany does not provide commercial waste collection service. Businesses who require a waste collection service will need to make appropriate arrangements with one of Albany's commercial waste service providers.