Soft plastics and unwanted paint accepted at Anglesea Transfer Station

Published on 16 September 2025

Soft plastic recycling is back at Anglesea Transfer Station, and the site is now also an authorised Paintback drop-off point for unwanted paint and tins/tubs. 

Households can drop off clean, dry soft plastics at no charge (household quantities only, up to 0.5m3 or five large garbage bags). Larger loads will incur a fee. The service is open to households only – commercial quantities are not accepted.

Soft plastic items include bread bags, chip packets, bubble wrap, plastic bags and cling film. They also include some thicker plastics like pet food bags, squeeze pouches, and mesh produce bags.

Cr Leon Walker welcomed the introduction of an ongoing soft plastics recycling program after a trial during August 2024. 

“It is fantastic to be able to recycle our soft plastics locally again,” Cr Walker said.

“The trial collection in 2024 was an overwhelming success, and we know the community has been waiting for this ongoing opportunity.”

That trial saw almost 500 residents drop off a combined 890 kilograms of soft plastics in just three days – equivalent to the weight of a small car. Feedback showed:

• 80% of the soft plastic had been stored for less than a month before drop off;
• 12% of participants had been holding on to soft plastics since the closure of the REDCycle program in supermarkets in November 2022; and
• Most items came from food packaging, followed by online purchases.

Collected soft plastics will be baled at Anglesea and sent to a Melbourne recycling facility to be turned into new soft plastic packaging, road materials or converted into gas for energy. 

Anglesea Transfer Station is now an authorised Paintback collection site, accepting eligible paints and packaging from households and professional painters at no charge.

Eligible paint must be in its original container, with tins no larger than 20 litres and a maximum of 100 litres per visit. 

The paint is separated and recycled into fuel and other by-products at a specialist facility, and the paint tins and plastic tubs are recycled. 

“We know waste is one of the biggest challenges and costs we face as a community,” said Cr Walker.

"Every item we can keep out of landfill and feed back into the circular economy helps reduce both the environmental and financial impacts.”

A full list of what soft plastics can be accepted at Anglesea Transfer Station can be found at surfcoast.vic.gov.au/SoftPlastics.

For more information on paints accepted for recycling through Paintback, visit surfcoast.vic.gov.au/Paintback.