Recycle It Saturday

Drive and drop off clothes in great condition, old electronics, small metal items, bicycles, polystyrene, x-ray scans and more. Quarterly, free.

Recycle It Saturday

Saturday 22 February 2025

Recycle It Saturday from 9am to 3pm at Alexandra Canal Depot, 67C Bourke Road, Alexandria.

Recycle It Saturday makes it easy for residents to recycle tricky household items.

Recycle It Saturday is a partnership between City of Sydney, Waverley Council and Woollahra Municipal Council.

We can only accept items from residents who live in these local council areas. This map shows the City of Sydney boundaries. We’ll ask for your address on the day.

We can’t accept items from businesses.

Check your items are accepted

What you can drop off 👍

What you can’t drop off 👎

Prepare and separate your items using old cardboard boxes

Before you arrive, group items into different boxes or bags. We recommend reusing old cardboard boxes, which you can leave with us for recycling. Pack these in your boot, backseat or trailer so we can easily remove them.

If youre a building manager or have a lot of items

Contact us to discuss quantities for drop-off

Visit our depot and stay in your vehicle

This is a drive-through event. Stay in your seat. Our team will unpack your vehicle for you and get you on your way faster.

If you’re walking or riding a bike, you can access a separate drop-off area at the end of the driveway.

Be mindful of what’s in your boot, backseat or trailer

To ensure you don’t drop off anything by accident, be specific when telling our team which bags or boxes they should take from your boot, backseat or trailer. Or better yet, ensure your vehicle is only packed with items you’ve brought to drop off.

Spread the word about Recycle It Saturday

If you're a resident in the City of Sydney, Waverley or Woollahra local council areas, print this poster in A4 or A3 size and display it in your apartment building or share it with your neighbours.

Download and print a Recycle It Saturday event poster.PDF · 32.98 MB · Last modified
Person carrying flattened cardboard boxes
Men unloading items from a car
Person in a high vis vest collects a pile of clothes from the driver of a car
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Consider re-use

When you drop off clothes and toys, they are resold and reused. Some electronics are repaired or refurbished, with data wiping, before being resold. All other items you drop off are for recycling only.

If your items are still in working condition, try to find a new home for your household items first. You could give them away to someone who needs it or try advertising online through Facebook Marketplace, Gumtree, Trading Post, EbayFreecycle or Rosella Street. Follow these tips to learn how to sell your stuff online fast.

Find out more about reducing, reusing and repairing.

Where does it all go? 

  • Clothes, linen and toys are donated to charity or reused in communities around the world that need them most. 
  • Polystyrene will be recycled into products such as building insulation and photo frames.
  • Electronics are sorted and broken down into parts for recycling, such as metals, plastics, circuit boards, glass and more. Some electronics are repaired or refurbished, with data wiping, before being resold. Batteries can be recycled into new ones. Mobile phone components can be used to make new technology, reducing the need for mining raw materials.
  • Light bulbs are crushed and the glass wool can become home insulation.
  • Gas bottles are inspected for reuse. Rejected bottles are shredded and the metal is recycled. The gas is recovered.
  • X-rays are recycled for their silver, which can be used in jewellery or electrical components. The remaining backing film is recycled into items like shampoo bottles or polyester fleece.
  • Printer cartridge recycling recovers the plastics, metals, ink and toner. Plastics are separated by type before being refined and metals are sent for smelting. They are then sold as raw materials for manufacturing. Ink is refined, mixed and sold as a printing ink.
  • Aluminium coffee pods are separated for their resources. Coffee grounds are composted. The aluminium casings can be infinitely recycled into new products.
  • Small metal items are taken to a local recycling facility and sorted into categories such as steel, copper, aluminium, lead, silver and gold. These different metals are shredded and sent to a smelter where they are mixed with other materials to create new products.
  • Blister packs are shredded, ground and mechanically separated into their component parts. The plastic is used to make decking products and the foil is turned into aluminium pucks, used by steel manufacturers during the steel-making process.
  • Oil-based paint is blended into an alternative fuel used in cement manufacturing. Water-based paint is separated into solid and liquid parts. The liquid is treated for contaminants and can be used as industrial wastewater. The solid sludge component is dried and treated for safe disposal. The metal paint tins are recycled.

Next events

Add these dates to your calendar.

  • Saturday 22 February 2025
  • Saturday 24 May 2025
  • Saturday 23 August 2025
  • Saturday 22 November 2025