Recycled organics statistics
Quantity of organics recycled
NSW is the national leader in organics recycling.
In NSW, more than 1.3 million tonnes of organic materials is recycled per year by licensed composting and related facilities. See the latest Reprocessing Industry Survey Report for more information.
Organics recycling infrastructure
In 1990, very few councils offered collection and recycling services for organic materials, such as garden organics. Now, approximately 61 licensed composting facilities exist across the state and 80% of councils in Sydney, Illawarra, Central Coast and the Hunter offer regular kerbside organics collections. The composting industry has experienced rapid growth in the last decade, forming an important part of the infrastructure built in NSW by councils and the commercial sector to help recycle organic materials.
The majority of these purpose built facilities are outdoor windrow composting operations, located mainly on the fringe of the Sydney Metropolitan Area, and in country areas. These facilities shred organic materials, place them in long piles and turn them with equipment to enable the breakdown of the organic matter into a soil-like product.
Collection and recycling services
Collection and recycling services are available to householders and businesses generating organic materials. Many councils offer kerbside collection services for garden organics, kerbside chipping and annual clean ups. Some councils and facilities offer drop off locations where garden organics and wood/timber can be taken for recycling.
In 2004, 71 councils operated a regular kerbside collection service for garden organics, with some offering expanded services, such as combined garden and food organics collections. Many of these collections are based on a container, such as a dedicated 240 litre wheelie bin.
Wood/timber from building and construction activities tends to be collected by waste companies. Clean uncontaminated wood may be separated for re-use, or chipped up into a variety of landscape mulch products or used as an alternative fuel.
Recycling of food organics is relatively new in NSW, and facilities are being built to divert more of this material from landfill.
Biosolids, the solid organic residue from sewage treatment plants is also recycled by a small number of composting facilities. This material is a high nutrient input into the composting process, producing a range of value-added soil and gardening products.
Markets for recycled organics
Markets for composts and related products have been growing rapidly across NSW.
Up to date market data is available in the Reprocessing Industry Survey Report, whereas more detailed information on individual markets for recycled organics is published in the Market Study Fact Sheet and the 2004 Market Study.
Further information
- City to Soil - A Circle of Sustainability
- Study on Local Government Management Costs for Garden Organics