GO green and clean!

What’s green and clean and belongs in your garden organics (GO) bin?

Garden Organics – or ‘GO’ for short – is the technical waste term for small branches, flowers lawn clippings, leaves, prunings and weeds. These are the only items that can GO in your lime green-lidded GO bin.

Garden Organics or 'GO' is lawn clippings and garden vegetation. Nothing else. — Garden Organics or ‘GO’ is lawn clippings and garden vegetation. Nothing else.

What’s not the GO?

Anything that isn’t lawn clippings or garden vegetation. Putting non-GO items in your GO bin contaminates the waste stream that’s destined for mulch, leading to less recycling and more landfill.

don't put bagged waste, food scraps, cardboard or anything other than lawn clippings and garden vegetation in your garden organics bin. — Food waste, plastic bags, bagged waste and cardboard are examples of non-GO items that contaminate the waste stream. Never put these items in your GO bin.

But I thought I could put food scraps in my lime-green lidded bin.

Some councils have adopted a FOGO (Food Organics Garden Organics) system that converts food organics and garden organics (FOGO) into compost or soil conditioner. FOGO processing is not yet available to councils in the western suburbs, but will be in the future. If you want to find out how food waste is commercially composted, come on one of our Waste Watchers recycling facility tours. Follow us on socials to be notified. In the meantime, garden organics in the western suburbs are processed into free mulch for WMRC member council residents, closing the loop on garden waste recycling. One hundred percent of GO waste can be recycled if it’s not contaminated.

More clean greenwaste = more FREE mulch for you!

What do I do with my other waste?

Click here for a quick summary of what waste goes where or visit Recycle Right’s A-Z directory for 3-bin GO (3-bin GO-Garden Organics).

Bulk quantities of cardboard can also be dropped off at the West Metro Recycling Centre in accordance with government COVID guidelines.

Tree stumps and prunings too large for your bin (<1.5m long) are suitable for bulk verge greenwaste collection, Verge Valet (in participating councils) or can be dropped off at the West Metro Recycling Centre for a fee.

Click for a comprehensive guide on what waste goes where.

More info?

Call the Recycling Hotline – 9384 6711.