If you live in Armidale, you already know all too well how lucky you are to call Armidale home. Armidale stands out as a significant education centre with an established and well-known university, TAFE and an impressive network of independent and public schools. Additionally, we are the beneficiaries of a thriving digital economy, variety of community services, recreational parks and sporting facilities, all of which have created employment and business opportunities.
Are you also aware of our city’s impressive recycling record? Armidale can boast of an impressive recycling rate; only four per cent of your household and business waste makes it to landfill. We are all working together when it comes to recycling and protecting the ecosystems of our environment, both local and beyond.
Waste & Recycling Collection
It is no small encouragement to recycle when it is collected weekly along with waste. Remember that although you are supplied with two 55-litre crates, you can always purchase more from the council for $25 and lids for $12. This means you can put out an unlimited number of crates for collection. To make things easy for waste collection, remember that crates without a lid are to be used for plastic bags, cling film, milk and drink containers, aluminium and steel cans, and glass and plastic containers. A crate with a lid is for all your clean paper, cardboard and paper cups, as long as they have the recycling symbol.
If you own a small or large business, you can manage your ongoing recycling needs by contacting Malcolm at New England Waste on 0429 323 696 or visiting us on Facebook to get a tailored plan for both general waste and recyclables. Separating your waste at the source can save your business big time while encouraging your staff to think sustainable and really consider what they are chucking before it goes to landfill.
In the area of green waste, every fortnight the council will collect your 240 litre green bin full of food scraps, grass clippings, small prunings, weeds, leaves and even soiled paper to lend support to the ‘City to Soil’ initiative; a bid to return biodegradable materials to the earth and enrich it’s quality through the input of additional nutrients. You can support ‘City to Soil’ through the use of compostable bags; your first roll is free, with replacement bags purchased from council at a subsidised rate of only $3 per roll. Once collected and composted, you can choose to purchase either A grade or B grade compost by the cubic metre for $90 or $70 respectively, thereby continuing to put your positive footprint on the environment.
Recycling & Waste Facilities
The Armidale Waste Management Facility is designed to maximise recycling and reuse of material. You are encouraged to sort your load into various skips at the Transfer Station. Be advised that you will be charged a higher fee If your load is mixed waste or contaminated, as it can only then be sent to landfill. The Armidale Recycling Centre is located within the Waste Management Facility and is open every day apart from Good Friday and Christmas Day.
If you lead a busy life and don’t fancy trips to the facility, New England Waste can assist you with both Commingled Units that allow you to separate general waste from recycling or traditional skip bins. You fill them up and we do the rest!
EcoARC
Armidale Regional Council has developed its own “green print” strategy for environmental sustainability. Entitled EcoARC, this strategy guides Council’s own operations and aims to assist groups in the community to improve sustainability in the Armidale region.
EcoARC was developed by Council staff and community representatives and includes nine topics, Global, Air, Biodiversity, Future, Living, Resilient, Transport, Waste and Water. The document’s scope and objectives are broad, to reflect an acknowledgement that the means of achieving its goals are most likely going to grow and adapt to change over time.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals were adopted by the United Nations in 2015. These Goals integrate the three dimensions of sustainable development, the social, economic and environmental. To recognise this ongoing global commitment within the community, EcoARC aligns the UN Goals with council’s EcoARC.
Community Gardens
If you are looking for a worthwhile initiative to support and enjoy afternoon activities, the Armidale Community Garden is worth a visit. The gardens are open four afternoons a week, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday from around 1pm until dusk, while the East Armidale Community Garden Project on Mossman Street involves developing a garden of vegetables, flowers, herbs, bush foods, medicinal plants, and native plants and shrubs in cooperation and consultation with members of Armidale’s Aboriginal community.
The Guyra Community Garden is a community owned garden where you can regularly meet up with friends and learn different approaches and skills to developing or fine-tuning your ‘green thumb’. Enjoy watching the fruits of your labour grow while basking in not only the outdoors but the in the satisfaction of making a positive, meaningful and significant effort to promote local sustainability within your own community.
Water Tanks
Are you considering the merits of installing a rainwater tank? It’s well worth more than a passing thought. As our most precious natural resource, a ready supply of water is something that can’t be taken for granted. Climate change is making us more and more aware of the importance of water to our survival, along with its limited supply, especially in such a dry continent as Australia.
Rainwater can be reused for a multitude of non-drinking uses, such as toilet flushing, washing clothes, garden watering and car washing. It can also be used to fill swimming pools, spas and ornamental ponds. The clever use of rainwater will conserve the public water supply of drinking water and can directly reduce the impact of storm water. NSW Health recommends that people in urban areas use the public water supply for drinking and cooking as it is consistently filtered, disinfected and contains fluoride, that promotes the health of teeth and gums.
Visit the website for New South Wales Health where there is detailed information outlined about rainwater tanks. Remember that rain water tank installation is always subject to the policies council outlines for domestic rainwater tanks. Visit the NSW planning portal to check if you need approval prior to installing a rainwater tank.
For further information, check out Sustainable Living Armidale where there is admirable detail given to the efforts of looking to raise awareness to the harmful implications of climate change and the increasing rate with which our natural resources are being used and depleted. The efforts of Armidale council and all of us as residents are directed towards creating a more self-reliant, increasingly resilient and sustainable environment. This will benefit our immediate quality of life, and more importantly, that of future generations. In other words, we’re doing it for the longevity of our town and the future of our kids. And for that we are all to be commended.
Looking for a Skip Bin in Armidale?
The New England Waste skip bin comparison guide makes it easy for you to work out how much your skip can hold. Remember that packing technique matters. Breaking up large, bulky items into smaller pieces will ultimately mean you can fit more. If disposing of bricks, neatly stack them instead of throwing them in haphazardly.
Words: F.Rafaneli
Sources: https://www.armidaleregional.nsw.gov.au/
About New England Waste
New England Waste has been serving the New England region since 1979, providing exceptional quality waste management solutions to a broad range of domestic and commercial clients. The family run, local business has grown to meet the waste management needs of the New England area including Armidale, Uralla, Tenterfield, Glen Innes, Inverell, Guyra and surrounds