Orange Sustainable Living Expo 2026

We managed the waste at the Orange Sustainable Living Expo. Every bin was taken away after the event, hand sorted and sent to the right place, so what people threw out actually got recovered.

What we did

• Bin stations across the site. Each station had a food waste bin (green lid), a recycling bin (yellow lid) and an everything else bin (red lid), all with clear signage showing what goes where.
• An everything else bin, not a landfill bin. It's there for anything people aren't sure about. We sort through it by hand after the event and recover what we can.
• Checks through the day. We kept an eye on the bins so they had room and never overflowed, then collected them all at the end.
• Hand sorting afterwards. Every bin was sorted into food waste, recycling, coffee cups and landfill. Landfill is only what we couldn't recover.
• A full report for the organisers covering what was collected, what was recovered and what to change next year.

Orange City Council also ran its own coffee cup recycling stations on the day. Any cups that ended up in our bins were pulled out and sent for recycling too.

The result

The organisers got a full waste report with the results and recommendations for next year. That report is for Council and Rotary, so we don't publish the numbers here.

What we can say is that hand sorting made the difference. Without it, the mix inside the bins would have been too contaminated to recycle or compost, and most of it would likely have gone to landfill.

What we learnt

• Signs alone aren't enough. Every bin was clearly signed, but most people use the closest bin without stopping to read it. A lot of the food waste ended up in the everything else bins and was pulled out by hand.
• Disposable plates and cutlery are the problem item. Plenty were labelled compostable or biodegradable, but compostable serveware can't go into composting in NSW because of PFAS concerns. It ends up in landfill however well it's sorted.
• Food vendor waste is the easiest win. It's concentrated and predictable, so with the right bins in front of vendors and a quick briefing, it can be separated at the source.
• Sorting afterwards is a safety net, not the goal. The more that goes in the right bin on the day, the better the result.

What's next

For the next Expo we've recommended vendor bins and briefings, helpers at the bin stations, and moving away from disposable plates and cutlery. On that last one, we're working on a reusable plates and cutlery service for events: we supply them, collect them after the event and wash them offsite.

Thanks to the Rotary Club of Orange and Orange City Council for making waste a priority at the Expo.

Running an event in the Central West?

Markets, festivals, community days, sporting events and functions. We set up the bins, keep an eye on them on the day, sort everything afterwards and give you a report you can share with council, sponsors or your committee. See how our event waste management works.