Waste Services

About

Rethink Waste Tasmania helps you to avoid waste, reduce waste, and re-use waste, and know what can be recycled

Rethink Waste Tasmania provides information about waste avoidance and resource recovery services, events and news for all Tasmanians – ranging from what can be recycled to how to compost food scraps and everything in between.
Most importantly, our projects and education services follow the waste management hierarchy and encourage Tasmania’s transition to a circular economy.
Rethink Waste Tasmania is brought to you by Tasmania’s Regional Waste Management Groups in partnership with the Tasmanian Government.

Guiding Principles

Let’s face it. We’ve been living a disposable lifestyle for too long.

Our landfills are choking on rubbish that’s spoiling our world and adding to the climate crisis. But did you know that sending waste to landfill also comes at a high financial cost?

Dumping waste is expensive. And so too is continually extracting natural materials and manufacturing new products.

Here at Rethink Waste, we’re all about cutting down the amount of resources going into landfills by encouraging you to become part of the solution. By making smarter choices – both at home and in business – we can all reduce our impact on the environment and contribute to a sustainable economy.

The time for change is now. Let’s shape a better and healthier future by expanding our sustainable industries and leaving a positive legacy.

Our creative approach is based on two essential concepts: waste management hierarchy and circular economies. These ideas also guide how our local and state governments manage waste in Tasmania.

Sure, it sounds complex. But it all begins with some common sense.

Here’s the breakdown of actions:

1. AVOID

It’s no secret that the easiest way to cut down on waste is to avoid it in the first place. You’ll also be helping to save energy and resources as fewer goods will need manufacturing in the first place.

2. REDUCE

When it’s impossible to avoid waste, there are plenty of ways to keep the amount to a minimum. Start at the source. It’s easier than you think to create better habits when buying products and food.

3. REUSE

Choose products you can use many times, rather than single-use, and buy the best quality you can afford so items last longer. Challenge yourself to find new ways to use or repair items you’d otherwise throw out.

4. RECYCLE

After using, recycle what you can. But be a ‘Good Sort’ and check it before you chuck it. <link to new recycling page> Recycling services are improving all the time, making the most of the valuable resources already used to manufacture items.

5. DISPOSE

Naturally, disposal and sending our waste to landfill is the last resort. But not all waste is equal. Take a minute to compost your food waste so it doesn’t add to the greenhouse gas emissions from landfills.

The waste management hierarchy is simply a ranking of ways to manage waste according to what’s best for our environment and economy. It takes the guesswork out of using our resources more efficiently.

Plus, it shows how even the smallest actions can make a big impact – no matter if you’re an individual, business, or school.

We all have a role to play in improving the way we manage waste, both through the choices we make when buying and using products and how we dispose of them.

Remember, when you make smarter decisions about waste, you’ll also be inspiring those around you. And nothing feels better than protecting our future.

Isn’t it time to Rethink?

Avoid. Reduce. Reuse. Recycle…..ARRR!

That’s one step closer to making a positive change.

 

 

In our current linear economy, we take raw materials and process them into products that are thrown away once used.

Put simply, linear economies drain our resources, overburden our landfills, and aren’t sustainable.

But there’s a better way.

A circular economy is a future-proof solution that retains the value of resources in the economy for as long as possible. This means we buy less and use products fully.

Instead of disposing, we reuse, repair, reprocess, and recycle.

The result?

We lessen our dependence on natural resources. And, because products are designed to be reusable or easy to repair, we maximise the life-cycle of existing materials.

A circular economy aims to extract the most value from our resources while generating the least amount of waste.

And this is where the waste management hierarchy fits in.

It’s essential that we all actively avoid, reduce, reuse, and recycle in order to ‘close the loop’.

Remember, our actions today will shape our tomorrow.

Together we can shape a better future

AVOID
✅ Take your own containers and bags to the shops
✅ Buy less food by planning meals in advance and shopping with a list
✅ Choose products and produce with little or no packaging
✅ Borrow or hire instead of buying – think book, toy, and tool libraries
✅ Make the time to sit in to eat rather than choosing takeaway
✅ Bring along your own reusable straw or simply go without
✅ Switch to soap and shampoo bars instead of plastic bottles
✅ Choose electronic bills, statements, and receipts where possible
✅ Display a ‘no junk mail’ sign on your letterbox
✅ Join online ‘buy nothing’ groups for inspiration and tips

REDUCE
✅ Buy items in bulk and transfer into reusable containers at home (including single portion containers for lunch boxes and snacks)
✅ Buy food that’s in season and store produce correctly so it stays fresh longer
✅ Switch to products that are easier to recycle or compost – think bamboo toothbrushes, natural loofahs, natural fibre cleaning cloths
✅ Choose rechargeable batteries over single-use ones
✅ Set your printer to ‘double sided’ printing as the default, if available

REUSE
✅ Choose reusable travel mugs and refill your water bottle
✅ Switch to reusable food storage, such as beeswax wraps, jars and bottles with lids, silicone ziplock bags, reusable containers
✅ Cook up your next meal from leftovers
✅ Compost any food and green waste
✅ Shop at (and donate to) your local charity shop or tip shop, or host a garage sale
✅ Choose reusable nappies, wipes, period products, beauty products, and cleaning cloths
✅ Swap clothes and toys with friends and family
✅ Repair rather than replace damaged clothes, toys, furniture, and appliances
✅ Get creative and upcycle items into new uses

RECYCLE
✅ Support businesses doing the right thing by choosing products and items made from recycled materials
✅ Use your kerbside recycle bin for household glass, steel, aluminium, hard plastic bottles and tubs, paper, and cardboard
✅ Contaminated recyclables are rejected at the sorting facility and sent to landfill, so be a Good Sort and learn what to recycle and how to reduce contamination
✅ Additional recycling services are available for batteries, electronic waste, light globes, paint, chemical containers, mobile phones, tyres, and much more

Waste Management Groups

Rethink Waste Tasmania is an initiative of Tasmania’s three Regional Waste Management Groups, in partnership with the Tasmanian Government.

The Cradle Coast Waste Management Group was formed in 2007 and represents nine north west Tasmanian councils and their communities. They collaborate to provide region-wide resource recovery, landfill diversion and recycling programs.  The programs are managed by Cradle Coast Waste Services, who also support the Group with administration, financial and communications services.  Cradle Coast Waste Services is a business of Dulverton Waste Management.

The Cradle Coast Waste Management Group offers a free Schools Program for schools in the Cradle Coast region, delivered by a Waste Education Officer.  Learn more about the Cradle Coast region’s Schools Program by viewing the introductory videos on the Rethink Waste Tasmania Youtube channel.

Member councils are Burnie City Council, Central Coast Council, Circular Head Council, Devonport City Council, Kentish Council, Latrobe Council, Waratah-Wynyard Council, and work is in progress for King Island Council and West Coast Council to join. 

Member Council Representatives

Simon Overland        Burnie City Council

Barry Omundson      Central Coast Council

Vanessa Adams         Circular Head Council

Matthew Atkins         Devonport City Council

Catherine Dale          King Island

Shane Crawford        Waratah-Wynyard Council

Ciara Spencer            West Coast Council

Jason Browne            Latrobe Council and Kentish Council

Veronica Schilling and Melissa Pearce from Dulverton Waste Management are non-voting members.

Resources

The region is currently rolling out a FOGO service to Devonport, Latrobe, Kentish and Waratah-Wynyard which will increase waste diversion.

Central Coast Council has this service already. You can find more information at North West Resource Recovery and Recycling (www.nwrrr.com.au)

Contact Us

Email us at ccws@dulverton.com.au

Circular North is hosted by NRM North in partnership with eight local councils: Break O’Day,
Dorset, Flinders Island, George Town, Launceston, Meander Valley, Northern Midlands, and
West Tamar. For more information on Circular North visit our website here.

The collaborative group was formed in 2007 and is responsible for delivering waste and
recycling programs to improve waste reduction and resource recovery. Circular North also
works to improve regional coordination of waste services, oversee waste management policy
setting and service delivery, and coordinate community education.

Circular North was formerly known as the Northern Tasmanian Waste Management Group

Resources

Contact Us

Email us at: ntwmp@nrmnorth.org.au

TasWaste South is a joint authority under section 30 of the Local Government Act 1993, established by the 12 councils in Southern Tasmania to ensure a more effective and efficient coordination of waste management and resource recovery. It’s purpose is ‘to coordinate local government’s resource recovery and management of solid waste in the southern region for a more sustainable future’.

Member Councils are: Hobart City Council, Huon Valley Council Brighton, Council Clarence City Council, Sorell Council Derwent Valley Council, Glenorchy City Council, Tasman Council Southern Midlands Council, Kingborough Council, Glamorgan Spring Bay Council, Central Highlands Council.

Resources

Tasmania's Waste Action Plan

The Tasmanian Government released its Waste Action Plan and Waste and Resource Recovery Strategy 2023 – 2026 providing a framework for the best way to address Tasmania’s waste and resource recovery challenges.

The Plan identifies key actions the State Government will take, including establishing a legislated statewide landfill waste levy and the introduction of a Container Refund Scheme (CRS)  in Tasmania.​​

A key goal of the waste management Plan is to achieve an 80% average recovery rate from all waste streams by 2030.  

 

The Tasmanian Waste Action Plan is aligned with the Australian Government’s Waste Action Policy  to deliver large-scale waste services and infrastructure improvements, including via the Recycling Modernisation Fund. 

 

The Tasmanian Waste and Resource Recovery Board adopted the Vision of Tasmania – A place where nothing is wasted. The Strategy identifies objectives to divert waste from disposal at landfill facilities, maximise resource recovery, and improve waste management practices in Tasmania.

Learn more about the Public Consultation on Draft Waste and Resource Recovery Strategy here.