Grants
Find out about the $356 million grants programs available under the NSW Waste and Sustainable Materials Strategy 2041 and the NSW Plastic Action Plan.
From July 2022 the NSW Government is investing $356 million to deliver priority programs and policy reforms under the NSW Waste and Sustainable Materials Strategy 2041 and the NSW Plastics Action Plan. These priority programs will help transition NSW to a circular economy and help mitigate impacts from climate change.
The investment builds on a number of successful initiatives and programs funded through the Waste Less Recycle More initiative.
Grants calendar
These are the funding opportunities under the Strategy and Plastics Plan. Expand each item for details.
The calendar will be updated as grants become available. The timing for grant opportunities is estimated, so is subject to change and revision.
Open grants
Opening date
20 March 2025
Status
Round 4 is now open, closing 4pm 29 April 2025
Description
Go FOGO grants support NSW councils to deliver new weekly food only (FO) or food organics and garden organics (FOGO) services to their communities. Find out more about the grant.
Contact
Eligible for
Local councils
Opening date
20 March 2025
Status
Round 3 is now open, closing 4pm 29 April 2025
Description
Scrap Together grants support councils or groups of councils to deliver community education to maximise the efficiency of existing food and garden organics (FOGO) services. Find out more about the grant.
Contact
Eligible for
Local councils, groups of councils
Opening date
1 June 2024
Status
Intake 5 opens 17 February closes 12pm 30 October 2025
Description
Supporting councils, community groups and other key stakeholders to deliver litter prevention projects, and develop and implement strategic plans to address litter in their local environments. Find out more about this grant.
Contact
Eligible for
NSW local councils, regional waste and catchment groups, not-for-profits, state government agencies, community groups, industry
Opening date
18 March 2024
Status
Open
Description
The rebates under this program aim to support the NSW food rescue and relief sector to build their capacity to safely manage increasing amounts of rescued food through smaller, quicker projects. Find out more about this rebate.
Contact
Eligible for
Food rescue organisations and/or food relief organisations
Opening date
1 November 2023
Status
Closes 12pm 30 June 2027
Description
Provides tailored advice and help to groups of councils to explore and undertake joint procurement of domestic waste management services. Find out more about this grant.
Contact
Eligible for
NSW Local councils, regional groups of councils and Joint Organisations of Councils
Opening date
6 December 2024
Status
Closes midnight 21 March 2025
Description
To support councils in the Regional Levy Area and non-regulated area of NSW to close and improve high risk landfills
Contact
Opening date
2025
Status
In development
Description
Ongoing support for the planning and delivery of waste management projects working in partnership with Aboriginal communities across NSW
Contact
Eligible for
Local Aboriginal Land Councils
Opening date
February 2025
Status
Phase 1 EOIs close on the 26 of October 2026
Description
Streets to Sea is a catchment-based approach to litter prevention, focused on reducing flows of litter from the terrestrial environment (e.g., streets as well as parks, plazas and other littered places) into the marine environment (e.g., waterways like estuaries, rivers, creeks, drainage channels and shorelines). The whole journey is in consideration to intervene and reduce the flow of litter - from streets to sea and all the potential points between.
Contact
Eligible for
NSW local councils, regional waste and catchment groups, not-for-profits, state government agencies, community groups. An applicant for Streets to Sea funding must be an existing recipient of a Stream 3 Own it and Act (OIAA) Litter Prevention strategic implementation grant and be implementing their roadmap.
Opening date
2025
Status
In development
Description
To support projects that propose solutions for the recycling of hard-to-recycle plastics, like soft plastics, and re-manufacturing to increase the use of recycled content.
Contact
Opening date
September 2025
Status
In development
Description
Supporting NSW local councils in waste levy paying areas to deliver innovative and collaborative waste solutions that support the transition to a circular economy and contribute to achieving NSW Government’s waste priorities and targets. Find out more about this grant.
Contact
Eligible for
Local councils and regional groups of councils in waste levy paying areas
Opening date
November 2023
Status
Ongoing
Description
Up to 50% to a maximum of $50,000 for equipment or technologies that assist businesses to avoid reduce and recycle waste and help them transition to a circular economy. Find out more about this grant.
Contact
Eligible for
Businesses and organisations with a commercial and industrial (C&I) waste service.
Closed grants
Opening date
25 July 2024
Status
Closed
Description
NSW universities and government research facilities can apply to investigate and identify harmful chemical additives in plastics products to improve understanding of factors that impact the quality of plastics recyclate and/or improve our ability to measure terrestrial microplastics safely and effectively. Find out more about this grant.
Contact
Eligible for
NSW universities and government research facilities
Opening date
18 March 2024
Status
Closed
Description
The grants under this program aim to support the NSW food rescue and relief sector build their capacity to safely manage increasing amounts of rescued food through large infrastructure projects, and regional coordinated collaboration. Find out more about this grant.
Contact
Opening date
20 September 2024
Status
Round 2 closed
Description
The grants under this program aim to support eligible organisations to incorporate education or training into existing programs to reduce and source separate food waste. Find out more about this grant.
Contact
Eligible for
Industry Peak bodies, sector leaders, councils and other relevant organisations
Opening date
16 September 2024
Status
Round 3 closed
Description
To support councils to provide a weekly FOGO service to residents. Find out more about the grant.
Contact
Eligible for
Local councils
Opening date
Round 3: Mid to late 2025
Status
Closed
Description
To support land managers clean up and prevent illegal dumping. Find out more about the grant.
Contact
Eligible for
Local councils, state government agencies, regional waste groups
Previous grant programs
From 2013 to 2021, Waste Less, Recycle More provided $802 million to stimulate new investment and transform waste and recycling in NSW. It included grant programs for local government, business, industry and the community, delivered by the EPA and the NSW Environmental Trust.
The Alternative Waste Technology Transition Package Grants were in addition to Waste Less Recycle More and supported the alternative waste technology industry and local councils directly impacted by the 2018 EPA revocation of resource recovery orders and exemptions allowing application of mixed waste organic outputs to land.
- Local councils
Boosting recycling and regional collaboration for waste management. - Infrastructure
Grants to boost investment in waste and recycling infrastructure, and support innovative solutions to recycling through research and development. - Landfill
Funding for consolidation, closure and environmental improvement. - Organics
Grants to keep food and garden waste out of landfill. - Household problem wastes
Funding household chemical and problem waste drop off services. - Business and industry
Advice, networking and equipment to reduce waste and recycle more. - Illegal dumping
Support for education, capacity building, prevention and enforcement. - Litter prevention
Targeting hotspots and the most-littered
materials.
- Organics Collections
Supporting councils to collect more kerbside organics waste. - Organics Infrastructure
To fund infrastructure and equipment to reduce food and garden organics waste going to landfill. - Local Government Transition Grants
Supporting eligible councils to provide sustainable, reliable and affordable kerbside services to their communities - AWT Research and Development Grant – Alternative Uses for General Waste
Support eligible AWT owners and operators in NSW in the development of new products or end markets for general waste in NSW
Local councils and other public sector
- Aboriginal Land Clean Up and Prevention Program
- Australian Packaging Covenant
- Better Waste and Recycling Fund
- Bin Trim business grants
- Circulate, NSW EPA Industrial Ecology Program
- Civil Construction Market Program
- Combatting Illegal Dumping: Clean Up and Prevention Program
- Community Recycling Centre Fund
- Council litter grants
- Funding for regional collaboration
- Funding for voluntary regional waste groups
- Landfill consolidation and environmental improvements
- Local Council Transition
- Local Government Organics Collection System Grants Program
- Love Food Hate Waste education
- Major Resource Recovery Infrastructure Program
- Product Improvement Program Grants
- Scrap Together
- Waste Recovery Facility Expansion and Enhancement Program
- Weighbridge Fund
Business and industry
- Alternative Uses for General Waste
- Australian Packaging Covenant
- Bin Trim business grants
- Bin Trim rebates
- Civil Construction Market Program
- Community Recycling Centre Fund
- Circulate, NSW EPA Industrial Ecology Program
- Local Government Organics Collection System Grants Program
- Major Resource Recovery Infrastructure Program
- Product Improvement Program Grants
- Waste Recovery Facility Expansion and Enhancement Program
- Weighbridge Fund
Community groups NFP and NGO
- Aboriginal Land Clean Up and Prevention Program Prevention Program
- Community litter grants
- Bin Trim business grants
- Circulate, NSW EPA Industrial Ecology Program
- Civil Construction Market Program
- Community Recycling Centre Fund
- Local Government Organics Collection System Grants Program
- Love Food Hate Waste education
- Major Resource Recovery Infrastructure Program
- Product Improvement Program Grants