Covid-19 (Coronavirus) update
Just because certain items can’t be recycled in Council recycling bins (or at Transfer Stations) doesn’t mean they need to end up in landfill. To make sure we are all taking greater responsibility for our waste at home or work, many common 'hard to recycle' household waste items can actually be re-processed via specialist recycling programs available to residents here in the Cairns Region.
To take advantage of these programs may require some extra effort on our behalf, but with more of us taking these small actions each day we are sure to have a big impact with protecting the environment.
Specialist recycling opportunities for Cairns residents:
| Item | Specialist Recycler | Actions to take |
|---|---|---|
| Soft Plastics | Redcycle | View the Redcycle program acceptable soft plastics web page. Collect materials at home, on shopping day return soft plastics to participating Cairns supermarkets. |
| Nespresso Coffee Pods | Nespresso & Terracycle |
|
| Beauty Products | Terracycle | Visit Terracycle's website to purchase a postage paid beauty products zero waste box, setup your own community group/work collection point. |
| Household batteries | Council Transfer Stations & Libraries, Battery World |
|
| Bottle tops & caps | Terracycle | Visit Terracycle's website to purchase a postage paid bottle tops zero waste box, setup your own community group/work collection point. |
| Printer cartridges | Planet Ark | Drop off your used or empty laser and inkjet cartridges at all Officeworks stores and participating Australia Post, Cartridge World, Harvey Norman, The Good Guys, JB Hi-Fi, Office National and Office Products Depot outlets. Visit Planet Ark's website for further details. |
| Cassette, CD, DVD discs | Terracycle | Visit Terracycle's website to purchase a postage paid media storage zero waste box, setup your own community group/work collection point. |
| Cigarette waste | Terracycle | Visit Terracycle's website to purchase a postage paid media storage zero waste box, setup your own community group/work collection point. |
| Fabrics, Clothing | Charities & Redcycle |
|
| Mobile phones & accessories | Cairns Phone outlets, Council Transfer Stations | Recycle at your local Optus, Telstra, Vodafone and Officeworks stores, search for your nearest Mobile Muster drop off locations in Cairns or take for free free to Portsmith, Smithfield, Gordonvale and Babinda Transfer Stations. |
| X-rays | Eco-cycle | Cairns residents are able to post x-ray films to Eco-cycle located in Hemant, Brisbane, at the address: 1/1204 Lytton Road, Hemmant, QLD 4174. For further information about x-ray recycling visit Eco-cycle's website. |
*The list above is a snapshot of the common items available for re-processing. Further items (and associated options) are regularly added to the list for reprocessing 'hard to recycle items' in Australia. Be sure to visit Planet Ark's Recycling Near You or Terracycle's websites for the latest updates.
Cairns Regional Council's Recycling Centre Trial (suspended):
The Recycle Centre Trial, representing many options seen above has been suspended for the time being.
Council's network of Transfer Stations continues to offer Cairns residents the ability to drop off materials for recycling and reuse, download the full list of items accepted at transfer stations ( PDF, 0.17 MB ) or contact Cairns Regional Council's Customer Service team for further information.
