RecycleSmart pickups

Our partnership with RecycleSmart allows residents to book free recurring Power Pickups. The program enables residents to recycle items that don't go in the yellow recycling bin. As the service is a convenient doorstep pickup, it is also helpful for those in our community who are unable to take items to specific recycling facilities - like the Community Recycling Centre.

How the Power Pickup works:

  1. Collect your hard-to-recycle items and fill a shopping bag.

  2. Book a pickup in just a few clicks via the RecycleSmart app or website. Once you sign up and enter your Willoughby Council home address, the "Free Council plan" will come up. Choose a pickup date that suits you—collections run Monday to Friday, and you don’t need to be home. 

  3. Choose your service:

    • Free recurring Power Pickup – Up to two bags collected at no cost. You can skip, edit, or cancel the allocated time up until 4pm the day before.

    • On-demand Power Pickup – $19 for two bags at a pickup time of your choosing

  4. Place your bags outside by 8am on the collection day. The RecycleSmart team will pick them up and ensure everything is properly recycled. Each bag is weighed, allowing you to track your recycling efforts.

For details on what can be collected, how to pack your recyclables, and other common questions, visit the RecycleSmart FAQ. And if you have any questions, you can contact the RecycleSmart team at hello@recyclesmart.com.

Please note that the time between each recurring free pickup will vary. Council has a set approved monthly budget for free RecycleSmart pickups. When demand is high, the time between pickups will be longer to ensure fair access for all residents within the allocated budget.

Accepted items

Read the full list on the Recycle Smart website. Below are some of the common items;

  • E-waste: Small electronics, appliances, batteries and mobile phones
  • Soft plastics: Plastics that can be scrunched such as bread bags, biscuit packaging, bubble wrap, produce bags
  • Textiles in good condition including clothing, shoes, bags, towels, bed linen
  • Textiles in non-reusable condition: clothes and bed linen that cannot be reused (separate and clearly label your wearable and non-wearable textiles)
  • Sneakers and other sports shoes (separate and clearly label your wearable and non-wearable shoes)
  • Books, toys and CDs/DVDs in good condition
  • Aluminum coffee pods in sealed plastic bag
  • Empty cosmetics and skincare or haircare packaging
  • Lightbulbs, paint (sealed), x-ray films, printer cartridges
  • Polystyrene that is hard, clean, white and not broken up
  • Note, they do not collect perfume bottles, nail polish bottles, nail polish remover bottles, needles and syringes. 

Book a RecycleSmart pickup

Additional Recycling Options

Aside from RecycleSmart, there are many other local recycling options available. Visit our A-Z of Recycling page to find out where to take specific items:

A-Z of Recycling

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