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Waste & recycling

Waste & recycling

Carrathool Shire's kerbside service is a single general-waste bin, and it only runs in some towns. Council collects in Hillston on Tuesday mornings and in Goolgowi and Merriwagga on Thursday mornings; residents of Carrathool village and Rankins Springs use the waste depots close to those townships instead. There is no yellow recycling bin and no green organics bin anywhere in the shire — Planet Ark's Recycling Near You lists 'General Waste' as the only kerbside service in this council area. Sorting happens at the tip instead: Council runs five waste facilities (landfills at Hillston, Carrathool and Rankins Springs, transfer stations at Merriwagga and Goolgowi), and all of them take green waste and scrap metal separately. Both the garbage collection charge and the tip access levy appear on your rates notice.

New to these terms? Read them in plain English
FOGO
The green bin that takes food scraps as well as garden waste.
Bulky / hard waste collection
Pickup or drop-off for large items that don't fit in your bins.
Community Recycling Centre (CRC)
A free drop-off for 'problem' waste like paint, batteries and oils.
See the full explainer, with formulas →

Bin collection at a glance

General waste (red lid)
Kerbside collection — Tuesday mornings in Hillston; Thursday mornings in Goolgowi and MerriwaggaPut the bin kerbside the night before. Council's page names the collection day for each town but does not publish the frequency in writing — phone (02) 6965 1900 to confirm for your street. Carrathool and Rankins Springs residents are directed to the waste depots near those townships rather than a kerbside bin. The 2026/27 garbage collection charge is $370 per service ($185 for each extra service), levied on the rates notice.
Recycling (yellow lid)
Not offered as a kerbside binNo kerbside recycling bin is listed on Council's waste pages, in its 2026/27 fees and charges, or by Planet Ark's Recycling Near You, which shows General Waste as the only kerbside service here. Council's 2023–24 Annual Report states that all five waste facilities have provision for green waste and the recycling of scrap metals, so separation happens at the tip.
Not offeredThere is no FOGO or garden-organics kerbside bin in Carrathool Shire. Green waste can be dropped at any of the five council waste facilities; non-residents are charged $15 per cubic metre for uncontaminated green waste (2026/27). Separately — and not a council service — the privately run Wormtech composting facility at Carrathool village is an EPA-licensed site that composts organic waste diverted from landfill, including food and garden organics collected from household green bins elsewhere.
Bulky / hard waste
No kerbside collection — take it to a council landfill or transfer stationBulky items such as furniture require Council approval before existing pits can be used. Residents' tip access is covered by the tipping charge levied with rates ($240 for 2026/27, rural and urban); a 'Rural Tipping Charge Exemption' form is available. Non-residents pay at the gate: $25 for a car, ute, station wagon or box trailer, $45 for a tandem trailer or small truck, $75 per cubic metre for larger trucks (2026/27).
Problem waste & drop-off
Hillston, Carrathool and Rankins Springs landfills; Merriwagga and Goolgowi transfer stationsHillston landfill is on the Kidman Way about 3 km north of town; Goolgowi transfer station is at the end of Penney Street; Rankins Springs landfill is 4 km out on Lake Cargelligo Road; Carrathool landfill is 1 km south of the village on Carrathool Road; Merriwagga transfer station is on Melbergen Road and is open to Merriwagga residents only. Bonded asbestos is accepted at the Hillston tip only ($180 per cubic metre, $180 minimum, 2026/27). Car tyres $15 each, truck tyres $40 each. Empty agvet chemical drums go through drumMUSTER. Council does not list an EPA Community Recycling Centre for household problem waste such as paint, batteries or gas bottles in the shire — check with Council before making a trip.
Find your bin day
Council's Landfills, Tips and Collection page / (02) 6965 1900There is no online address lookup for this council — the collection day is set by town (see the link below). Facility opening hours are restricted and differ at each site.

Kerbside collection is provided in Hillston, Goolgowi and Merriwagga; Carrathool and Rankins Springs are served by their local waste depots. Charges, facility hours and gate fees change each year with the adopted fees and charges — confirm the current figures on the official sources below. Waste facility opening hours are limited (for example, Goolgowi transfer station opens Tuesday and Thursday mornings and Sunday midday only) and all sites are closed on public holidays.

Sources — check it yourself

Figures are current as at the dates shown and may change — always confirm with the linked source. See the notice at the bottom of the page for full details and how to report a correction.