Toowoomba Regional Council to expand polystyrene recycling trial after 17 tonnes diverted from landfill

Toowoomba residents have jumped at the chance to recycle their polystyrene waste and its prompted the council to expand the service to other parts of the region.

EXTENDED: Water and waste portfolio leader Councillor Nancy Sommerfield inspects the upgraded polystyrene recycling machine at the Greater Toowoomba Waste Management Facility.

Toowoomba residents have recycled than 17 tonnes of expanded polystyrene (EPS) thanks to a new 12-month trial at the city’s main waste management facility.

The Toowoomba Regional Council will expand the program following the initial enthusiasm, which will see the recycling machine at the Greater Toowoomba waste management facility at O’Mara Road upgraded.

The original machine will be relocated to the Kleinton facility as part of the move.

Water and waste portfolio leader Councillor Nancy Sommerfield said she was delighted by the outcomes.

“This (program) has seen 1574 cubic metres of EPS diverted from landfill, which is the equivalent of 25 home swimming pools,” she said.

“Council has installed a new, larger capacity machine at the O’Mara Road site in order to more efficiently process the volume of material delivered by residents.

“The new machine can process up to 200kg or 18 cubic metres of EPS per hour, which is about double the capacity of the original machine.

“Safety has been improved as more of the process has been automated, which requires less manual handling by the operator.”

Residents have also continued to support other forms of bulky recycling, with 480 tonnes of e-waste and 4200 mattresses diverted from landfill since 2019.