What goes in my bins?
Find out what goes in each bin. Council supplies recycling, general waste and garden waste recycling services.
-2048x2048.jpeg/_jcr_content/renditions/cq5dam.web.1280.1280.jpeg)
What you need to know
- Empty bottles and containers before placing them in your yellow bin. You don't have to wash them out.
- Leave lids on bottles, containers and jars when placing them in your yellow bin. When lids are not attached to bottles and containers, they are too small to be processed and are therefore discarded to landfill.
- Do not put recycling or garden waste in a plastic bag before placing it in your yellow or green bins.
Ensure that you can close your bin lid
Bins left open, or even slightly ajar, when put out for collection, or inside your property can cause amenity and odour issues to your community.
They can also attract flies, vermin and other animals such as birds or possums that can scatter rubbish.
Download our bin posters
To maximise recycling and waste recovery efforts, you might like to consider installing signs near the bins in your workplace or apartment complex.
Frequently asked questions
Polystyrene can't be recycled in your yellow bin. However, you can take household quantities (maximum 5 cubic metres) of clean polystyrene to one of our resource recovery centres.
Soft plastics are items like bubble wrap, cling wrap, chip packets and shopping bags. These items can't go into Council recycling bins and should be placed in your red bin.
Recycle your coffee cups by dropping them off at a participating convenience store or cafe.
You can put coffee cup lids into your yellow bin.
Pizza boxes can be recycled in Brisbane. Place them in your yellow bin.
We encourage households to compost food scraps where possible. If you don’t have a compost system, you can find a community composting hub near you. Council also offers a compost rebate program.
If composting isn’t a viable option, you can place food scraps in your red bin.
We encourage residents to place garden waste in their green bin.
You can also use any garden waste, such as grass clippings, as mulch or compost in your garden. If this is not possible, you can place garden waste in your red bin.
Do not place garden waste in your yellow bin.
Did you know Council runs a compost rebate program?
You can place your garden waste in your green waste bin.
Additionally, Council issues waste vouchers annually to Brisbane households. These vouchers can be used for garden waste recycling at any of our resource recovery centres.
Unfortunately, broken glass is a safety risk to staff at recycling facilities. Do not place any broken glass in your yellow bin. Broken glass should be wrapped in paper and placed in your red bin.
Unused expired medication and unsafe disposal of medication can lead to environmental damage.
Your local community pharmacy offers a free and convenient way to dispose of your unwanted medication responsibly.
