The City of Melville is marking the 30th anniversary of National Recycling Week, by thanking the community for being GREAT sorts.
In 2025-2026, the City collected 7,954 tonnes of recycling, with 75.15% recovered and given a new life instead of going to landfill.
That equates to around 5,977 tonnes of valuable resources kept in use.
The result reflects the efforts of the Melville community to recycle correctly and support a circular economy, where valuable resources are recovered, reused and kept in circulation for longer.
National Recycling Week celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, running from Monday, 9 November to Sunday, 15 November under the theme Join the Cycle.
Across Western Australia, new State Government data shows 4.7 million tonnes of material was recycled in 2024-2025, with the statewide recycling rate reaching 62%, up from 42% in 2014-2015.
Since its launch in 2020, Containers for Change has also resulted in the return of more than 5.73 billion 10-cent containers, equivalent to more than $573 million in refunds, while generating more than $22 million for charities, schools and community groups across WA.
GREAT Sorts are people who Gift items to charity, Recycle correctly, Earth-cycle food scraps and garden waste, Avoid excess packaging and Take items such batteries to drop off points.
This National Recycling Week, the City is encouraging residents to keep valuable resources in use by remembering a few recycling basics:
- Just the five: paper, cardboard, cans, plastic bottles and containers, and glass. Clean and dry, with lids removed and not in bags to go in your yellow-lidded recycling bin.
- Loose, rinsed, dry, with lids removed: keep recyclables loose (no bags), give food containers a quick rinse and leave the lids off.
- Keep it out: bagged items, soft plastics and food scraps don’t belong in the recycling bin.
- Batteries: never place them in kerbside bins as they can cause fires in trucks and facilities. Drop them off at any one of the many B-cycle drop-off points located at your local supermarkets and Bunnings or at one of the five Beyond the Bin Recycling Stations.
- Think beyond the bin: give, swap or sell items online, gift them to neighbours or friends, or donate clean, working items to charity.
- Book a convenient charitable collection. This new service offers residents a valuable opportunity to donate quality household goods, books and clothing that are clean, usable and in good condition to Paraquad industries who reuse, recycle and sell items through their op shop stores. Collected from your house!
Not sure what goes where? Check www.wastesorted.wa.gov.au or the Recycle Right guide at recycleright.wa.gov.au/a-z.
Attribute the following comments to City of Melville Mayor Katy Mair:
"As we mark National Recycling Week, I'd like to congratulate our community for doing the right thing when it comes to recycling.
"In 2025-26, more than 75% of the recycling collected in Melville was recovered and given a new life instead of going to landfill. That's a great result and reflects our community's commitment to a clean, green and sustainable City.
"Our Council Plan commits us to using resources sustainably, reducing waste and supporting a circular economy, and recycling correctly is one simple way we can all contribute."