I was just wondering how the rubbish (garbage) and stuff is sorted and collected where you live.

The thing that start this thought process off is that locally the council is about to change the system which has caused all sorts of hoohah in the local paper.

Currently we have two bins.  The black sack bin is for general rubbish (but not garden waste) and the green bin is for paper, tins and some plastics.  The green sack is collected fortnightly and the black sack weekly.  We have to take bottles to bottle banks, either at the supermarket or local tip. 

We will be swapping to larger wheely bins which will be collected fortnightly for general waste.  There will be a separate bin for cans and plastics, a box for papers and a box for glass.  The council have also said that we must take to bins/boxes to the edge of our property ourselves.  Currently they will come to the back of the property to collect the rubbish if they can get access.

Anyway i just thought I'd find out how it's done elsewhere

I'm in Queens, NY and we have trash pickup twice a week.  Recycling is picked up once per week.  We have to tie newspapers and magazines in bundles, plastic, aluminum and tin have to be put in blue recycling bags and be put in a separate trash can that is lableled for recycling.  Regular trash must be put in another trash can.  I'm glad that the trash and recycling cycle has gone back to normal.  For awhile during the winter, we had trash pickup once a week, and recycling every other week.  With the summer coming, the city restored regular pickup back in April, otherwise the stink would have been unbearable all summer.

I'm fairly fortunate in as much that I don't have to separate too much rubbish...the only thing our council asks is that all paper and card is placed in a separate box (laughably no bigger than a shoebox!) - everything else - even the bottles and cans - goes in the household waste...(I presume they must sort it out 'their end' - probably why my council tax is so high...!)

Whilst I'm (sort-of) on the subject, DO NOT do what I did several years ago...after mowing the lawn, I put all the cuttings into humungous black bags and thought I'd get rid of them when I had the time...

After about three days of fairly warm weather, you would have thought I had a rotting corpse in the garden - the stench was foul...

Moral: Don't be a lazy sod...Get your backside down the dump almost immediately...!!

In Brisbane we are supplied with 2 wheelie bins - a black one for general household rubbish and a bin with a yellow lid in which recyclables go - bottles and jars, papers, magazines, cardboard, cans, aluminium, plastic milk bottles, etc.  The black bin is collected weekly and the other fortnightly.  We have to take the bins on to the footpath and face them in the right direction so that the trucks can pick them up and empty them.  The truck is fitted with a hydraulic arm which lifts the bin and empties it into the back.  There is a separate compartment on the back of the truck for the recyclables. 

About once a year the council has a curbside clean up for each suburb.  You can put out old refrigerators, funiture and other large items.  People are allowed to scavenge and take whatever you've put on the footpath.  It can be quite amusing to watch!

We are also supplied with one voucher per annum for green waste and one for general waste  which can be used at any of the Council Transfer Stations.

As far as green waste goes, we are encouraged to compost it.  We pay a private company about $11 a month to supply a huge bag which we fill, they collect it and compost it.  Me and compost heaps don't get along!!

It really bothers me  how much waste our household generates.  I've started taking my own bags to the supermarket to save on plastic bags.  I do make a conscious effort to buy things without excessive packaging but that is easier said than done. :-\

About once a year the council has a curbside clean up for each suburb.  You can put out old refrigerators, funiture and other large items.  People are allowed to scavenge and take whatever you've put on the footpath.  It can be quite amusing to watch!




My council used to pick up up to 3 items for free.  You just had to move them to the front or side of the house where they were easily accessible.  They have just introduced a charge for this service.  A couple of weeks ago someone called the council to get an old pushchair taken away and they came and took her old one and her brand new one which was also out in the garden!



We are also supplied with one voucher per annum for green waste and one for general waste  which can be used at any of the Council Transfer Stations.

As far as green waste goes, we are encouraged to compost it.  We pay a private company about $11 a month to supply a huge bag which we fill, they collect it and compost it.  Me and compost heaps don't get along!!


Currently I can buy bags from the council and they will come and remove them the following week but only if I put out 5 bags of composting material.  This system is going to change and we will get an annual charge to pick up a brown bin fortnightly.  This will be a voluntary system.  We already compost a lot of our stuff but do generate huge amounts of leaves and grass clippings so will look at buying into the system.



It really bothers me  how much waste our household generates.  I've started taking my own bags to the supermarket to save on plastic bags.  I do make a conscious effort to buy things without excessive packaging but that is easier said than done. :-\


I rarely remember to take my bags back to reuse them.  I do reuse them as waste bin bags at home and also take them to nursery where they use them to wrap wet clothing in to send it home.  I've just started my boy in pants so we're getting lots of these 'presents' at the moment  :)

My council used to pick up up to 3 items for free.  You just had to move them to the front or side of the house where they were easily accessible.  They have just introduced a charge for this service.  A couple of weeks ago someone called the council to get an old pushchair taken away and they came and took her old one and her brand new one which was also out in the garden!



These items are picked up for free, no matter how many of them you have.  But they are only picked up on what is called "bulk day", which is one of the two regular trash pickup days we have.  The exception is air conditioners.  Before the sanitation will take them, you have to call the Dept of Sanitation and make an appt for someone to come to your house and remove the freeon (sp?) from the air conditioner.  A sticker is then put on it that this has been done and the sanitation will then remove it.

I'm in Queens, NY and we have trash pickup twice a week.  Recycling is picked up once per week.  We have to tie newspapers and magazines in bundles, plastic, aluminum and tin have to be put in blue recycling bags and be put in a separate trash can that is lableled for recycling.  Regular trash must be put in another trash can.  I'm glad that the trash and recycling cycle has gone back to normal.  For awhile during the winter, we had trash pickup once a week, and recycling every other week.  With the summer coming, the city restored regular pickup back in April, otherwise the stink would have been unbearable all summer.



Well,what a coincidence,I live in Queens too and we have the same rules for recycling!  ;D



Howard

We seperate EVERYTHING-newspaper/paper, cardboard, cans/bottles/plastics. Then we just put all these different bags full of whatever, on the back porch next to the garbage cans and our trash people (a private company) take it. I really don't know if there are any guidelines or not. We do it because we believe in recycling. I do know that the local dump have recycling bins at the enterance. They charge you by the bag so if you are taking your own stuff to the dump (instead of paying someone to do it-like we do) you want to put what you can in the recycling bins so you won't be charged to dump it.



Cat

Here you can separate bottles and newspaper. I do ;)

Most areas of Sydney are supplied with three wheelie bins. One for recyclables like jaytee's in Brisbane, one for garden waste and a smaller version for general household refuse. The general rubbish bin is collected weekly, and the green waste/recycle bins are emptied on alternate weeks. It's a pretty good system and easy to manage IMO.

Like jaytee, we also have a curbside collection/clean-up about twice a year.

Well,what a coincidence,I live in Queens too and we have the same rules for recycling!  ;D



Howard


Wow Howard, isn't that amazing!   ;D ;D ;D

I'm fairly fortunate in as much that I don't have to separate too much rubbish...the only thing our council asks is that all paper and card is placed in a separate box (laughably no bigger than a shoebox!) - everything else - even the bottles and cans - goes in the household waste...(I presume they must sort it out 'their end' - probably why my council tax is so high...!)

Whilst I'm (sort-of) on the subject, DO NOT do what I did several years ago...after mowing the lawn, I put all the cuttings into humungous black bags and thought I'd get rid of them when I had the time...

After about three days of fairly warm weather, you would have thought I had a rotting corpse in the garden - the stench was foul...

Moral: Don't be a lazy sod...Get your backside down the dump almost immediately...!!
:P :PI don't think the grass itself was that bad,but got to remember,animals like to "pee' in it,and worse! :P :PPlus small dead things like snails,worms and birds could be in it.That probablty explauins the stench.                                Anyway,our gargage is in one cart with wheels,and the recyclables are in a bigger blue one.Pretty good,though sometimes people are tempted to put more in than they can push.Cheers!

Wow Howard, isn't that amazing!   ;D ;D ;D



Don't tell me! 73RD and Bell Blvd is where you live.If that's it,we can meet one day for coffee and cake! :)



Howard

We have 2 wheely bins, black for garbage w/o recycleables and a green for province wide composting (if it ever lived or is boxboard in it goes).
We also have 1 monthly recycle pick up (cans, plastics, glass and paper).  Works out pretty good unless it's summer and you toss in some seafood compost(lobster or mussel shells) can get a bit aromatic and as I once found out racoons can open the bins and climb inside but can't get out.

Don't tell me! 73RD and Bell Blvd is where you live.If that's it,we can meet one day for coffee and cake! :)



Howard


Nope, I live out in Astoria.

Nope, I live out in Astoria.


Well,I know most or all of the buses.I've been taken Mass Transit(buses and trains) for 16 years and I read bus and subway maps sometimes.I'll let you know when. :)



Howard

Each shire in Perth is different.

Before I moved last year my old Shire had a system where we put everything in the one wheely bin and they had a huge recycling plant that sorted it all as it came thru.  When they brought the system in we had a few misgivings regarding cross contamination but they insisted it was all very cleverly done.

In the Shire I have moved to we have one wheely bin for normal rubbish collected weekly and two plastic crates collected fortnightly.  One crate is for plastics, aluminium, milk cartons, aerosol cans etc, the other is for paper and cardboard.

We have three green pickups a year where we can put plant matter and tree cuttings out of the verge for collection.

We have two brown pickups a year where we can put out household items, tyres, fencing etc etc - all the big stuff.

We also have 3 days a year for charity collections - they put bags in your mail box and you can fill them with clothing, books, household items that still work etc and several charities will collect them from the verge.