Recycling 2.0 Household Help (Pilot Program)

The Recycling 2.0 Household Help Pilot Program will operate across the municipality’s most highly contaminated mixed recycling kerbside collection routes covering parts of:  

• Altona North 

• Altona Meadows 

• Laverton 

The specific routes that will be subject to the pilot program are: 

• Monday area 2, route 202, mixed recycling collection  

• Monday area 3, route 202, mixed recycling collection 

• Wednesday area 2, route 202, mixed recycling collection 

• Wednesday area 3, route 202 mixed recycling collection  

Cleanaway in partnership with Hobsons Bay City Council is doing visual bin checks as part of the Hobsons Bay Recycling 2.0 Household Help Pilot Program, to address the following:  

Safety

 When our waste and recycling truck drivers pick up your wheelie bins, they can see what tips out into their truck. This helps alert them if something dangerous has entered the vehicle (such as electronics that could start a fire).  

Community benefit

This technology also shows us which households require waste education.  

We’ve heard from our community that 3 in 4 people living in Hobsons Bay believe recycling right is very important to them. But there can be confusion around what goes in which bin – which has a big impact on the people who sort our recycling, and how much we send to landfill.  

Putting the wrong things in household recycling bin can result in genuine recyclables being sent to landfill, because there’s too many non-recyclables mixed in any given truckload. This can waste the recycling efforts of your neighbours and can also increase the cost of our waste and recycling service for the whole community as it costs more to divert recycling to landfill.  

Circular economy

In 2020, the Victorian Government released a circular economy plan to reform Victoria’s waste and recycling industry. Titled Recycling Victoria: A new economy, the policy outlines the systemic change required to cut waste and boost recycling and reuse of our precious resources. Communities and councils have an important role to play in supporting the transition to a circular economy at a local level. 

No. The pilot program is using camera technology in the trucks that allow drivers to see the bin contents as it moves through the hopper (the part of the truck where the bin contents are tipped into).  

Any visual bin inspection will be conducted in a ‘lift-lid’ manner where Cleanaway staff will observe just the top of the bin contents.    

No. The program is being run in accordance with Council’s Privacy Policy.

We are strongly committed to protecting and preserving an individual’s right to privacy and to the responsible and fair handling of their personal, sensitive and health information.  

All kerbside bins are owned and therefore property of Council and any information gathered is used solely for the purpose of improving our waste collection service and resource recovery opportunities.   

Cleanaway, our waste and recycling management service provider, has stringent data management procedures in place. Data is stored and managed securely by Cleanaway during and after the contract has expired.  

Any photos of your waste and recycling are stored securely via address (without personal names associated with them). 

If at any time there are concerns with the way data security is being managed by Cleanaway, we have the right to audit the service provider in accordance with contract terms and conditions.  

The program is only capturing and reporting on the yellow-lid mixed recycling bins.  

The other waste and recycling streams (food and garden, glass and general rubbish) may be considered for a larger scale program once this pilot program has concluded and a robust review has been conducted.   

We will update the community through the website and other communication channels if the program is expanded to include other waste and recycling streams.  

Yes. Community members can call the Hobsons Bay Language Line on 9932 1212 which offers recorded information about the key Council services in nine languages, with an option to connect directly to an interpreter and the Council Officer, should the caller require more information. 

We can also offer written waste education resources as part of the program in a resident’s preferred language. Please email enviro@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au to request materials translated into a particular language.   
 
If you need further help accessing our interpreting and translating services, please call us on 1300 179 944. 

We understand it can be frustrating if you have a neighbour who is using your household bin.  

In the first instance, please consider asking your neighbour not to use your bin. They can contact us on 1300 179 944 if they require a larger bin.  
 
To assist with this matter, we may also send a letter to the whole street about bin etiquette. Please contact us on 1300 179 944 to arrange this.  

The Hobsons Bay Recycling 2.0 Household Help Pilot Program has been developed in response to a number of factors.

The Victorian Government has new waste management strategies and legislation in place, driving higher levels of recycling and less waste to landfill.  Local councils and residents play an important part in Victoria’s transition to a sustainable and thriving circular economy.  

We incur increased costs when waste is disposed to landfill due to government levies, which is a financial consideration for the community.  

We are committed to continual improvement and achieving our aims to divert more waste from landfill, as detailed in the Council endorsed Waste and Litter Management Strategy 2025. However, we can’t do it alone; everyone in our community has a shared responsibility to live more sustainably and solve our waste crisis together.  

Furthermore, putting the wrong items in the wrong bin: 

• makes sorting materials difficult or impossible 

• results in materials being sent to landfill that could have been put to good use 

• damages collection trucks and processing equipment  

• poses a risk to truck drivers and workers doing the sorting of materials 

• makes the waste and recycling service cost more for everyone (levies for general wasted disposal increase and costs must be recovered through rate rises).