What common contaminants do you see?

You get everything here. Newspapers, tin cans, soda cans, beer cans, plastic bottles, even a full wardrobe of clothes. Nappies, lead based painted wood, MDF, chipboard, bricks, tiles, rocks, nails, screws and garden tools that have been put in by accident.

A lot of green waste in plastic bags that don’t get emptied out. Even though some plastic bags are supposedly biodegradable, there have been tests done confirming that’s not true. We will always pick that out.

Tell us one of the things you like most about your job.

Robbie: I like getting all the rubbish out, because in the end it gets turned into compost and used all over Geelong.
Jack: I like that it isn’t stressful. When I go home at the end of the day, I don’t have to think about work.

What are some strange things you’ve found in garden bins?

Robbie: We found a Koala once and recently a 5- to 6-foot-long Python. But the worst is dead animals and syringes. Please don’t put your dead pets in your green bin!
Jack: Really heavy metal items like car parts that need to be lifted to the side. (If the bin is too heavy it can get damaged, or cause damage to the truck).

What is your worst day?

We call it filthy Friday because the green bins can be full of rubbish. It’s disappointing that some people use their green bin as an extra red bin. The rubbish is spread onto the ground for us to pick everything out individually.

Has working in this role changed how you think about waste?

Robbie: Yes. It’s sort of an eye opener when you first think, wow do people really throw all that stuff into their green bin?
Jack: I think people just don’t think about it. You put it in your bin; it gets taken away and it’s gone. You don’t really think about where it goes or what happens to it after that.

Why is it important for the community to put the right thing in their garden bin?

Jack: It costs them money in their rates because the City needs to hire us to pick the rubbish out.
Robbie: Also, it costs more in landfill fees that gets charged to ratepayers to dispose of the rubbish we pick out of the green waste. These fees get more expensive every year.

What's challenging about your job?

Jack: The weather is probably the big one.  You get used to the smell fast, you don’t notice it after a while.
Robbie: We work in all elements and because it is very open here, it gets windy. You’re trying to grab rubbish, and it is just blowing everywhere.

What is your number one waste tip or something you do at home to reduce waste?

Jack: Buy less. Recycle more.
Robbie: I’m a big fan of the 10c recycling (Victoria Container Deposit Scheme).

What do you wish the community knew that could help you with your job?

That we exist. People may not be aware that we pick the rubbish out of their green waste bin after it gets taken away. It doesn’t just go to landfill. We pick it clean so it can be turned into compost to benefit the whole community.