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Kerbside Collection - wheelie bins

Council provides a kerbside collection service to residential properties in most urban areas and to some commercial premises and rural households along service routes.

Each property has two 240 litre wheelie bins, a yellow-lidded bin for recyclables and a green or red-lidded bin for general waste. The service alternates between collection of recyclables one week followed by general rubbish the next.

Recycling was introduced to the service in 2012 in response to community demand, to meet our environmental responsibilities and to minimise the costs of waste disposal for ratepayers. By reducing the amount of waste going to landfill, we reduce the amount we have to pay in waste levies and emissions charges, while saving space in our district's landfill.

The service is funded by rates on the properties that council provides the service to.

National Kerbside Standardisation

New kerbside collection standards took effect from 1 February 2024 - recycling, glass, organics and rubbish are now being sorted in the same way right across New Zealand, making it easier for all Kiwis to recycle.

We were already following the national standards for recycling prior to this, so for now there is no change to the way that Clutha recycles.

We know that Clutha residents are looking forward to glass recycling and we are working on how this service will look, but as we are exempt until 1 January 2027, this is still a few years away.

Yes! You can continue to recycle the following items in your yellow recycling bin:

  • Clean plastic bottles, trays and containers marked with 1, 2 and 5 (♳, ♴ and ♷).
  • Clean aluminium and steel cans
  • Clean paper and flattened cardboard (including flattened pizza boxes that are free of food scraps)

These items need to go into your red wheelie bin or recycled elsewhere:

  • Soft plastics, single-use coffee cups and lids, drink cartons
  • Compostable packaging and containers
  • All lids, triggers and pumps except those that are tethered to a container (for example, tomato punnets)
  • Plastics 3, 4, 6 or 7 (♵,♶,♸ or ♹)
  • Plastic or foil lined paper and cardboard
  • All glass
  • Polystyrene
  • E-waste

These can all continue to be placed in your rubbish bin, as well as general household and green waste.

For more information please see the Ministry for the Environment website.

Kerbside collection days

Having trouble remembering which bin to put out each week? Look out for our weekly reminders via Council's Antenno app.

MondayTuesdayWednesdayThursdayFriday
Balclutha (part), Kaka Point, Owaka Balclutha (part), Benhar, Inch Clutha, Stirling Clinton, Heriot, Tapanui, Waipahi Kaitangata, Milton (part), Waihola Lawrence, Milton (part), Waitahuna

Your bin needs to be out by 7am on the day of collection. Rural households that have opted into the service will be collected once a week when the truck passes your property.

There are no collections on Christmas Day, New Year's Day or the morning of Anzac Day (25 April). Usually collection moves to the following day, or to the afternoon for Anzac Day afternoon.

Council advertises any changes to the collection schedule. If bad weather closes roads, your bin will be collected on the next available day.

Wheelie bin lid clips

If your bin gets blown over in high winds, visit a council office, library or i-SITE and pick up a free wheelie bin lid clip.

These clips are designed to keep the lid of your wheelie bin sealed and secure in adverse weather conditions. This helps prevent littering and pollution when bins are tipped over, keeping your garden and the environment clean and green.

Installation instructions

1. Place the clip under the bin lid handle so the hook is facing down.

2. Bring the rounded end of the clip across the top of the bin lid handle and thread the hook through.

3. Pull the clip down so the hook catches the side of the bin.

For more help watch the installation video.

Calendar page 1

View and/or download the 2025 kerbside collection calendar

What can and can't go in the wheelie bin

What to put in your recycling wheelie bin (yellow lid):

YES - they can go inNO - they can't go in
Clean plastic bottles, trays and containers numbered 1, 2 and 5 Glass
Clean paper and cardboard Plastic bags
Clean aluminium/steel cans and tins Food or garden/green waste
Milk and juice cartons

What to put in your rubbish wheelie bin (green/red lid):

YES - they can go inNO - they can't go in
General (non-recyclable) waste, for example: Hot or un-bagged ashes
Glass Paint and chemicals
Food waste Sharp objects, demolition waste
Cold, bagged ashes Explosives, flammables, gas bottles
Nappies Car batteries
Plastic bags and plastic cling film Liquids, fats, oils
Green/garden waste Bricks, timbers, metals
Polystyrene Hazardous waste, medical waste
Milk and juice cartons

Remember:

  • Glass is excluded from kerbside recycling collection because of the significant costs involved in collecting and sorting this material. You can drop your glass for free at the Mt Cooee Landfill and the Clinton, Lawrence, Milton, Owaka and Tapanui transfer stations. Glass at Mt Cooee is used for drainage and roading. Glass at Transfer Stations is currently landfilled until and alternative is identified.
  • Only clean plastic containers, numbered 1, 2 and 5 can be put in your yellow-lidded bin. If it doesn't come from your bathroom, kitchen or laundry it should not be going in your kerbside recycling bin.
  • Lids, triggers and pumps need to be removed from plastic bottles, pottles and containers.
  • Soft plastics such as plastic bags, chip packets, and gladwrap can't be recycled through the kerbside collection because of the process at the sorting plant in Dunedin. The first part of the sorting process is done by machine and plastic bags and film are so light that the machinery recognises it as paper, meaning that the paper gets contaminated with plastic.
  • Our contractor WasteCo takes recyclables to Dunedin for sorting. From there it is sent to places through New Zealand and overseas for processing and turning into new products. The waste from your rubbish bin is disposed of at Mt Cooee.
  • By separating and recycling what we can, we reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and therefore reduce the amount we pay in waste levies and emissions charges. Recycling also contributes to meeting our environmental responsibilities.
  • The rules around what can and can't go in each bin are to protect the health and safety of staff and to ensure a cost-effective and efficient service is provided to ratepayers. The success of the service relies on everyone putting the right items in the right bins. Contamination is taken seriously, with a 'three strikes' system. Meaning that you get two warnings before your service is suspended for three months if it is found to be contaminated for the third time.


For detailed information about kerbside rubbish and recycling collection in the Clutha District download the kerbside rubbish and recycling brochure

Kerbside collection reminders

Download the smartphone app Antenno, to remind you which bin to put out each week. These reminders are published at 6pm on a Sunday night.

In 2022 the week beginning 3 January was a YELLOW bin week.

Trial kerbside collection for Clydevale and Tuapeka Mouth

Council have approved to trial a kerbside collection service to residential properties in the Clydevale and Tuapeka Mouth area. This kerbside collection service will be provided on a trial basis until the end of Councils current kerbside contract in October 2023. If enough properties commit to joining the service and good feedback is received during this trial period, Council will look to make the collection permanent in the area. The service began in the area from Tuesday 25 January 2022.

What you need to know

  • Each property that signs up to the service will be provided with two 240 litre wheelie bins, a yellow-lidded bin for recyclables and a red-lidded bin for general waste.
  • Cost of the service will be added to the properties rates. Current waste collection rate for the year from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022 is $158.10 per annum. However, properties will be only invoiced pro rata for the remainder of the year, after the application has been received and the bins delivered.
  • Residential household or business properties are eligible to apply for a set of bins. Vacant sections and empty buildings are not.
  • The trial service that has been operating behind the Clydevale Swimming Pool ended on 18 January.
  • Collection day will be on a Tuesday. The service will alternate between collection of recyclables one week followed by general waste the next. Councils kerbside collection calendar can be found here.
  • As this is a trial, the service will be optional to residents on the collection route as well as those who are willing to bring their bin to a collection point.

The route that the collection truck will travel is set out below.

Please refer to the kerbside rubbish and recycling brochure for a guideline of using this service, it outlines details such as what to put in your recycle bin and rubbish bin, frequently asked questions and where to place your bin.

If you are interested in this service, please complete the application form and return to Council.

Joining the wheelie bin service

Visit our Forms & Guides page for a wheelie bin service application form. If you're on the collection route, you should have your new bins within two weeks. If you're not on the collection route, we may still be able to provide you with bins, as long as you are prepared to transport them to a collection point yourself. We will be in touch if this is the case.

The service is funded by rates. After you receive your bins, you will receive an invoice for the remainder of the rating year. The waste management rate will be added to you property for the following rating year.

Stopping the wheelie bin service

For public health reasons, residential properties in defined urban areas cannot opt out of the service. You have the choice not to use them, but you will still be charged for them through your rates. If you have voluntarily joined the service you can stop at anytime by calling 0800 801 350.

Swapping your bins

You cannot have extra bins or swap one for another. Only one set of bins is provided to each property. Extra waste can be disposed of at Mt Cooee or in one of Council's 10 waste transfer stations. Because the bins are rated for as a set, they come in pairs, one yellow and one green/red lidded bin.

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