Waste & recycling
When your bins go out, and how The Hills Shire handles recycling and bulky waste. The shire runs a three-bin kerbside service: a red-lid general-waste bin collected weekly, and a yellow-lid recycling bin and green-lid garden-organics bin that alternate weekly (so each is collected fortnightly). The green bin is garden-organics only for now — under the council's planned new waste contracts starting 1 October 2027, the green bin is planned to become a weekly Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) service, ahead of the NSW Government's statewide FOGO mandate for 1 July 2030. To find your collection day, use the council's bin-day lookup.
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.
- General waste (red lid)
- Weekly
- Recycling (yellow lid)
- FortnightlyAlternates weekly with the green bin. Milk/juice cartons, glass bottles/jars, plastic containers, steel/aluminium tins, paper and cardboard.
- Food & garden organics (green lid)
- Fortnightly — garden organics only for nowPlanned to become a weekly combined food + garden (FOGO) service when new waste contracts start 1 October 2027; ahead of the NSW FOGO mandate for all councils by 1 July 2030.
- Bulky / hard waste
- 2 free Household Kerbside Clean-Up Collections per calendar yearBooked collection, date given within 14–28 days of your request. Book via the Waste Hotline or the council's online e-request form.
- Problem waste & drop-off
- Free — household batteries, chemicals & CDs/DVDs at council libraries & Customer Service Centre; annual Chemical CleanOut & e-waste drop-off daysOther items: nearest SUEZ Resource Recovery Centre, 29 Powers Road, Seven Hills (fees may apply to some items).
- Find your bin day
- Check which bin to put out and when (council tool)See the link below.
The Hills Shire's green bin is garden-organics only at present; a combined food-and-garden (FOGO) service is planned for the council's next waste contracts from 1 October 2027, ahead of the NSW-wide 2030 mandate. Bin frequencies, fees and any charge for extra clean-up collections can change — confirm current details on the official sources below.
Sources — check it yourself
- The Hills Shire Council — Check which bin to put out and when (bin-day lookup)
- The Hills Shire Council — Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO)
- The Hills Shire Council — Clean-Up Collection
- The Hills Shire Council — Save Big: Guide to your Waste Service (fact sheet) · Nov 2024
- The Hills Shire Council — FREE Drop-Off Opportunities and Events
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.