Roll-out of glass-only purple bins begins

Published on 11 October 2021

This week, Colac Otway Shire residents will notice a new purple bin start to appear, which is for ‘glass only’ recycling that will begin in November as part of the Colac Otway Shire Resource Recovery and Waste Management Strategy.

“Broken glass in co-mingled recycling bins contaminates paper, cardboard, plastic and metal – making them less valuable and more difficult to recycle,” said Colac Otway Shire Council CEO Anne Howard. “That’s why keeping glass separate has a huge impact on the quality of other recyclable materials and will help create a more environmentally responsible collection service for our community.”

The purple bin will be picked up every four weeks on the same day of the week as the yellow bin, which will continue to be picked up fortnightly. To find the purple bin pick-up day in the month relating to your property, please refer to your waste calendar, the waste section of this website, or, from November, a new GoodSort personal waste management app, currently in development.

What’s staying the same?

• Your red bin (landfill) will continue to be collected weekly.
• Your yellow bin (for recycling) and green bin (for FOGO: Food Organics and Garden Organics) will continue to be collected fortnightly (don’t forget, we’re doing weekly green bin collections from late October through early November to help you clean up for fire season).

What’s changing?

• When purple bin collections start in November, we’ll ask you to ‘be a good sort’ and separate your glass recycling into the purple bin.
• You’ll continue to use your yellow (recycling) bin for metal, paper, cardboard and hard plastics.
• Put your purple bin out (every four weeks) with your yellow bin.

For more information, including waste calendars and what waste goes in which bin, visit https://www.colacotway.vic.gov.au/My-property/Rubbish-recycling