Waste Education

Preschools / Childcare Centres

Hawkesbury City Council offers a FREE Early Learning Centre Waste Education Program. The year-long program is available to all preschools and childcare centres in the Hawkesbury area.

The interactive program, is part of Council’s waste education plan, and aims to introduce young children aged 4 – 5 years to concepts such as waste, recycling, litter and related environmental issues. The program is designed to engage and facilitate an early environmental awareness in young children.

The activity-based sessions are delivered by experienced environmental educators from EnviroCom Australia, an independent consultancy company. EnviroCom has over 20 years’ experience in the delivery of waste and environmental education to schools and the community.

To participate, please ensure you book as early as possible, as the program is popular and spaces are limited. You can book by emailing EnviroCom at hawkesburywasteprograms@envirocom.com.au.

Primary Schools

Hawkesbury City Council offers a FREE Primary School Waste Education Program. The year-long program is available to all primary schools in the Hawkesbury area.

The interactive program, is part of Council’s waste education plan, and aims to educate students on the impact of waste generation and disposal on the environment and explores practical methods to minimise waste. As the program is designed to align with the Australian National Curriculum, it complements school environmental and sustainability units of work.

The activity-based sessions are delivered by experienced environmental educators from EnviroCom Australia, an independent consultancy company. EnviroCom has over 20 years’ experience in the delivery of waste and environmental education to schools and the community.

To participate, please ensure you book as early as possible, as the program is popular and spaces are limited. You can book by emailing EnviroCom at hawkesburywasteprograms@envirocom.com.au.

To learn more about the program and when it will next be available, please contact EnviroCom Australia on:

EnviroCom Australia

Phone: (02) 6360 5500
Email: hawkesburywasteprograms@envirocom.com.au

ABC Education – War on Waste

The ABC documentary ‘War on Waste’ presented by Craig Reucassel elevated the issue of waste in our society and has helped inspire communities to take action.

On the ABC Education website, you can find short clips from the documentary suitable for years 3 to 10 (as recommended by the ABC), which help to show how wasteful our society is and the environmental impacts that result from of our over consumption.

Click here to view these short clips.

The ABC also provides a number of free curriculum-linked resources for school teachers and students which you can access on their website linked here.

The Story of Stuff Project

The Story of Stuff Project originated as the online film ‘The Story of Stuff’, which became an online viral sensation. The film aims to expose the connections between a number of environmental and social issues by providing a fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption values.

In the years since releasing this film, the non-profit organisation has produced a number of educational films, study programs and campaigns all targeted at transforming the way we make, use and throw away stuff for a better future.

To view the film ‘The Story of Stuff’ that kick-started the organisation click here.

Visit The Story of Stuff Project to view other short, easily sharable online films that explore some of the key features of our relationship with stuff.

Hawkesbury Living Sustainably Workshop Series

Are you looking to build your knowledge and skills in living more sustainably? Hawkesbury City Council offers free face-to-face and online workshops for all residents living in the Hawkesbury Local Government Area to learn about a variety of sustainability topics.

For more information on upcoming workshops visit the Sustainability Workshops website page or Councils Hawkesbury Living Sustainably Eventbrite page.

Waste and Recycling Education Videos

A family affair - Getting everyone involved in recycling

Hawkesbury residents have one of the lowest recycling contamination rates in Sydney, let’s keep recycling right and include the whole family.

Here are the Top 5 Things to keep out of the recycling bin:

• Soft Plastics: Use your nearest RedCycle
• Recycling tied in Plastic Bags: Keep it loose to ensure its recycled.
• Clothing: Clothes can get stuck in the sorting machines. Instead, drop off at the Hawkesbury Community Recycling Centre
• Polystyrene
• Food Scraps: ensure your recycling containers are completely empty

Your family recycling right will:

• reduce your environmental impact
• keep valuable materials out of landfill
• recover materials to support the economy
• protect natural resources.

Waste Surveys show that on average 18% of the red lid general waste bin contains items that could have been recycled.

Remember to recycle:

• Paper and Cardboard
• Glass Bottles and Jars
• Aluminium and Steel Cans
• Milk and Juice Cartons
• Empty rigid plastic bottles and containers from your kitchen, bathroom and laundry

In the last 4 years, Hawkesbury residents’ recycling efforts have resulted in:

• 13,839 tonnes CO2e prevented. That’s the same as 3,275 cars being permanently removed from our roads
• 232,111 gigajoules of energy saved. That’s the same as 10,745 average households’ energy use.
• 374,144 kilolitres of water saved. That’s the same as 149 Olympic swimming pools.
• 147,825 cubic metres of landfill space saved. That’s 615,939 wheelie bins saved.

Lifting the lid on recycling behaviours

Soft plastics

The next time you go to put that empty pack of chips in the recycling bin, think again. If it’s plastic and you can easily scrunch it in your hand, keep it out of your recycling bin.

Recycling - What you can and what you can

Keep it simple when it comes to recycling,

1. Keep it loose

Please place your recycling loosely in the yellow lid bin – never in plastic bags. Plastic bags jam the machinery at our sorting facility, so we can’t recycle them or anything placed in them. Use a container or box to store your recyclables before putting them into your bin.

2. To rinse or not to rinse

No need to rinse containers before putting them in the recycling bin. They just need to be empty and dry. You might like to rinse anyway, as it keeps your recycling bin extra clean and odour-free.

3. Soft vs hard plastics – do the ‘scrunch test’

To identify soft plastics, do the scrunch test’. If you can scrunch your plastic into a ball easily, it can’t go in your yellow lid bin.

Journey beyond the kerbside: Introduction to a Materials Recovery Facility

Learn what happens to your recycling after your bin is collected. See the different processes at the Materials Recovery Facility including how items are sorted into material types using a range of different methods.

Waste hazards: Dangers of hazardous waste at a Materials Recovery Facility and safeguarding workers

Hazardous waste items like batteries, gas bottles and motor oil if placed in your yellow lid recycling bin can pose a serious safety and fire risk to staff working at the Materials Recovery Facility.

Remember if you have the following hazardous waste items you can drop them off for free at the Hawkesbury Community Recycling Centre, located at

Hawkesbury City Waste Management Facility
1 The Driftway, South Windsor
Phone (02) 4560 4444
Opening 8am-4pm, 7 Days a week.
(Excluding Public holidays).

Items accepted at the Hawkesbury Community Recycling Centre include:

• Gas Bottles
• Fire Extinguishers
• Paint
• Fluro Globes and Tubes
• Car and Household Batteries
• Motor and Other Oils
• Smoke Detectors

Also accepted for free: Computers and Televisions, Textiles, Cardboard and Paper