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Waste & recycling

Waste & recycling

How Darebin's household bins work today. Homes on the council's kerbside service have three bins: general waste (red lid), collected every week; recycling (yellow lid), every 2 weeks; and food and green waste (green lid), every 2 weeks, on the weeks the recycling isn't collected. Glass bottles and jars still go in the yellow recycling bin: the council's 2026–27 budget funds the introduction of separate glass collection in 2027–28. Find your collection days on the council's map or zone calendars.

New to these terms? Read them in plain English
Bulky / hard waste collection
Pickup or drop-off for large items that don't fit in your bins.
See the full explainer, with formulas →

Bin collection at a glance

General waste (red lid)
Every weekFor items that can't go in the recycling or food and green bins, including soft plastics, nappies, pet waste, coffee cups and wrapped broken glassware. The standard bin is 80 litres; owners can pay for a 120-litre ($65.00) or 240-litre ($292.30) bin, with fee exemptions for some medical needs, families of six or more and households with two or more children in nappies. Put bins out before 5am on collection day.What goes in each bin →
Recycling (yellow lid)
Every 2 weeksPaper and cardboard, hard plastic bottles and containers, glass bottles and jars, and cans, tins, foil and empty aerosols. Standard bin: 240 litres. Soft plastics and long-life cartons go in the red-lid bin.What goes in recycling →
Food and green waste (green lid)
Every 2 weeks, alternating with recyclingFood scraps (including meat, bones and dairy) and garden waste, put in loose: no bags, not even compostable ones. The council says the service was extended to all residents in mid-2022, and the contents go to the Veolia organics facility in Bulla. Standard bin: 120 litres; owners can upsize to 240 litres ($67.10, or $44.37 for pensioner card holders) or add a second 240-litre bin ($124.46), 2026–27 fees. Free kitchen caddies are available at the Preston customer service centre and the Preston, Reservoir and Northcote libraries.Food and green waste →
Separate glass collection
Planned for 2027–28The adopted 2026–27 budget says it supports the council's introduction of glass separation in 2027–28, including education and support for households. The council hasn't yet published how the service will work.Council budget →
Booked hard waste
1 free collection of up to 2 m³ a yearFor residential properties paying the kerbside waste service charge (code KWR 120 on the rates notice); the allocation renews on 1 July. Book online, by phone on 03 8470 8888 or at a customer service centre; the council says collection can be up to 4 weeks after booking. Extra collections cost $82.30 per 2 m³, plus $29.80 per mattress, $33.20 per fridge and $16.60 per tyre.Book hard waste →
Tip: Darebin Resource Recovery Centre
30 Kurnai Avenue (off Henty Street), Reservoir — open 7 days, 8am–3pmClosed public holidays. Free drop-off for domestic quantities of cans, clean flat cardboard, reusable clothing, batteries, cooking oil, glass bottles and jars, light globes, paint (original labels) and steel; charges apply to general and green waste, mattresses, tyres, e-waste and building materials. No asbestos or mixed rubble. The Recycled Goods Shop on the same site opens 8.30am–3pm.Tip fees and hours →
Find your bin day
Council map (address search) or the East and West zone calendarsWhen Christmas Day, New Year's Day, Good Friday or Anzac Day falls on a weekday, collections for the rest of that week move one day later. Other public holidays: collection as usual.Check your bin day →

We describe the bins the way the council does. Darebin doesn't yet have the separate purple-lid glass bin of the state's standard four-bin system; the council plans to introduce glass separation in 2027–28. Your bins are paid for through the kerbside waste service charge on your rates notice (see Rates & fees). The council currently says bin repairs and swaps may take up to 5 weeks because of high demand.

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.