Waste bin audit very revealing

Published on 07 July 2025

Loddon Shire residents are doing a pretty good job sorting out their recycling, but there’s always room for improvement.

That’s the conclusion to be drawn from an independent audit of bin contents carried out on behalf of Council’s waste contractor earlier this year.

The audit covered 202 general waste and recycling bins in Inglewood and Wedderburn, or about 1,117 kg of material.

Recycling was from bins in Wedderburn, with waste from Inglewood – these were then sorted into recycling, organics and waste.

The contents for each audit were mixed together during transport so particular households were not identified.

The 102 recycling bins collected in Wedderburn showed a contamination rate of 17.3 per cent of the contents, with ceramics, glass fines, soft plastic (bags and film) and metal the main culprits.

Over in the waste bins, 28.25 per cent of the material could have been recycled instead, including paper, newsprint, cardboard and magazines/advertising materials.

Loddon Shire Council Township and Waste Services Coordinator David Price said the results of the audit were promising.

“Given that the most recent major statewide audit showed about 23 per cent of the contents of recycling bins were contaminated, these samples show that our residents are doing a pretty good job,” he said.

“However there’s always room for improvement and this audit serves as a reminder both ways.

“Paper, newsprint, cardboard and pamphlets can go in your recycling, while ceramics and items like clothes hangers should either go in the red bin or be donated if intact.

“Glass bottles and jars along with scrap metal can be dropped off at our transfer stations for free, while plastic bags and film should go in the red bin.”

For more information on where to dispose of what, please visit the Council website.

Caption: Ceramics don’t belong in the recycling stream.