Recycling and waste
The Who Cares about the Environment in 2006? survey found that while most people recognise the value of recycling, many of us aren't aware of its full benefits to the environment. Only one in three respondents was aware that recycling paper, cardboard and glass not only saves on materials, but also helps save water, energy and fuel.
NSW has set an ambitious target of increasing recovery and use of materials from the municipal waste stream, which includes household waste, from 26% in 2000 to 66% in 2014. There's a lot we can do at home and at work to achieve this goal and the first step is community awareness.
Our Environment - It's a living thing website tells you what you can do to improve recycling at home. There's an explanation of how to make the most of kerbside recycling and how to shop for products and packaging you'll be able to recycle.
Recycling at home can be tricky, so DECC's easy guide to recycling brochure offers tips on how to make it a little easier.
Want to work out how much you're saving and how your recycling initiatives benefit the environment? Use the Benefits of Recycling Calculator to graph your performance and plot your progress.
There's plenty you can do at home when it comes to recycling organics. Explore our publications list for fact sheets, studies, reports and other helpful publications. The easy guides to mulching, composting and worm farming are also useful resources for community groups and education programs.
Thousands of tonnes of waste are also sent to landfill from public places in NSW every year even though around 60% of this is recyclable. Yet most people surveyed at special events and public places around the state said that recycling at events was 'a very important issue'. Find out how to plan a Wastewise event or just get advice about recycling at your next family picnic.
For more general information on how DECC is supporting recycling in NSW, the waste section of this website introduces key waste legislation and explains how DECC is working with business to reduce waste. There's also information on programs to reduce litter and illegal dumping and resources for local government.