← Surf Coast Shire Council
Waste & recycling

Waste & recycling

Surf Coast households have four council bins: a lime-green FOGO bin for food and garden waste, a yellow recycling bin, a purple glass-only bin and a red landfill bin. In urban areas the service comes with every home. On rural properties it is optional, and if you opt in you get all four bins. The council doesn't run a kerbside hard waste collection. Instead, ratepayers get free-disposal vouchers for its transfer stations. Use the council's address lookup or the SCRRApp app to find your bin days.

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

FOGO — food and garden organics (lime-green lid)
Weekly in urban areas, fortnightly in rural areasAll food scraps and leftovers, including meat, bones, dairy and seafood, plus lawn clippings, leaves, prunings and small branches up to 10 cm across. Only compostable bags supplied or approved by the council. Standard bin: 240 litres. The council says FOGO bin upgrades aren't available.What goes in the FOGO bin →
Recycling (yellow lid)
FortnightlyClean, dry paper and cardboard (including drink cartons), plastic bottles and containers stamped 1, 2 or 5 with lids removed, and steel and aluminium cans. Put items in loose, not bagged. No glass; it goes in the purple bin. Standard bin: 240 litres.What goes in the recycling bin →
Glass only (purple lid)
Every four weeksGlass bottles and jars with all lids removed. No drinking glasses, window glass, mirrors, Pyrex, ceramics or crockery. Standard bin: 140 litres.What goes in the glass bin →
Landfill (bright red lid)
FortnightlyGeneral household waste that can't go in the other three bins, such as nappies, soft plastics, coffee cups and broken crockery. Never put batteries, e-waste, liquids, hot ashes or chemicals in any bin. Bags left beside the bin aren't collected. Standard bin: 140 litres.What goes in the landfill bin →
Rural properties
Optional four-bin serviceRural residents can opt in to the kerbside service. It comes with all four bins and the annual rural garbage charge on the rates notice. You can't choose only some of the bins. If you don't opt in, you manage your own rubbish and recycling and pay no garbage charge.Rural bin service →
Hard waste
No kerbside hard waste collectionThe council says it has looked at a kerbside hard waste service but it isn't currently viable because of the cost and the size of the shire. Instead, ratepayers get annual waste vouchers with the July rates notice. These cover free drop-off of up to 1 m³ of green waste and general waste worth up to 1 m³, and pick-up of up to 1 m³ of mulch, at the Anglesea, Lorne and Winchelsea transfer stations. The 2026–27 vouchers are valid until 4pm on 31 August 2027. Garden waste (fire prevention) vouchers follow each October and are valid to 31 January. Whitegoods, scrap metal and e-waste are accepted free.Waste vouchers →
Drop-off: Anglesea Transfer Station and Landfill
50 Coalmine Road, Anglesea — transfer station 9am–4pm, 7 daysPhone 5263 2978. Household garbage or hard waste costs $124/m³ and green waste $43/m³ in 2026–27. Sorted recyclables and glass under 0.5 m³, e-waste, batteries and scrap metal are free. EFTPOS or a voucher only; no cash. May close at short notice in dangerous weather, and all council waste sites close on Catastrophic fire danger days. The council projects that the landfill will close around 2030; the transfer station will stay open.Fees and hours →
Drop-off: Lorne, Winchelsea and Torquay
Lorne and Winchelsea transfer stations; Torquay residential drop-offLorne (370 Erskine Falls Road): Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 9am–12pm, Sunday 2pm–5pm. Winchelsea (55 Cressy Road): Tuesday and Thursday 2pm–4pm, Saturday 1.30pm–3.30pm, Sunday 9.30am–12.30pm. Torquay (130 Messmate Road): Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday 8am–12pm. Torquay takes small amounts only: 1–2 bags of household rubbish, food waste in compostable bags, recycling, glass and small e-waste. No green waste or furniture.All drop-off sites →
Find your bin day
Council address lookup, or the SCRRApp appCheck your bin day →

We describe the bins the way the council does. Surf Coast already runs the state's four-bin colours (lime-green FOGO, yellow recycling, purple glass, red landfill). Standard sizes are 240 litres for FOGO and recycling and 140 litres for glass and landfill; larger or extra bins cost more. The council is holding a bin amnesty: bins at a property that nobody pays for will be removed, and bins without the council's sticker won't be emptied. Services and fees change, so check the council's pages below.

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.