Mobile recycling centre hits the road

16 November 2020

A free disposal service for problem household waste is hitting the road in the Bega Valley. 

The mobile Bega Valley Community Recycling Centre (CRC) will start its tour of the Shire with a week at the Bermagui Waste Transfer Station from Tuesday 1 December.

Council’s Waste strategy Coordinator, Joley Vidau said the repurposed former horse float – a recycled product itself – will let people dispose of small hazardous items that can’t go in kerbside bins.

“It’s pretty common for people to build stocks of things like old batteries and paint at home because they don’t know how to responsibly dispose of them. Our mobile CRC is here to help,” Ms Vidau said.

“When we pull up at a place near you, bring along your old batteries, paint, gas bottles, fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, cooking oils and fluorescent globes and tubes, and we’ll do the rest.

“When the trailer is full of problem waste, we take it to the main CRC in Merimbula for sorting and processing.

“We often get asked what happens to this waste once it arrives at the CRC, and the answer lies in a problem becoming a commodity through clever reuse and recycling.

“Paints, for example, are mixed with other waste solvents and used as an alternative fuel in cement kilns. Car batteries provide recyclable plastic, lead and acid for use in other industries, and used gas bottles are either restored or recycled as scrap metal.”

Ms Vidau said the summer bushfires and COVID-19 restrictions had kept the mobile CRC off the road this past year, but improvements to the trailer had been made during this time.

“We took the opportunity to further improve the way the mobile unit was set up by including separate storage units for each item, making it easier for people to drop off problem waste.

“If you have problem waste you need to dispose of but can’t wait for the mobile CRC, the drop-off centre at the Merimbula Waste Transfer Station is open during normal hours.

“As always, be careful of transporting these goods because some of them can be dangerous if handled incorrectly,” Ms Vidau said.

To keep track of where the mobile CRC is, check the Bega Valley Waste app and the Bega Valley Waste and Recycling Facebook page. 

Bega Valley Shire Council’s CRC is funded in partnership with the NSW Environment Protection Authority from the waste levy as part of the Waste Less, Recycle More program. There are more than 90 CRCs in NSW. 

For more information visit www.begavalley.nsw.gov.au/waste or download the free Bega Valley Waste app.