Policy Waste Disposal: Landfill Policy

The University of Newcastle maintains a formal policy that covers waste disposal, recycling and measuring waste sent to landfill. The Environmental Sustainability Policy was in force throughout 2025, setting recycling targets and establishing annual monitoring. Waste and recovery information helps the University evaluate material sent to landfill and diverted through recycling.

Policy for waste disposal and recycling

The Environmental Sustainability Policy effective from 8 December 2022 to 22 June 2026 governed the 2025 reporting year. Clause 12 (Waste and Recycling) committed the University to establishing and working towards a recycling-rate target for general solid waste, alongside education, reduction of disposable items, responsible supplier choices and regulated hazardous-waste disposal. It also required annual monitoring and reporting to University Council, executive leadership and in the annual report.

The policy connects disposal decisions with measurement: tracking waste, recovery and landfill supports assessment against targets and operational improvement.

How waste sent to landfill and recycled is measured

The University monitors general waste, recycling and recovery streams through contractor reporting. Monthly data, accurate baseline measurement and separation of materials are operational priorities, enabling tracking of landfill disposal and recycling performance.

The University’s 2023 Interior Design Guidelines also embed waste separation into campus planning: bin locations and types are considered during design, with operational bins provided through the University’s waste-management contract. Read the Interior Design Guidelines.

Waste reduction and recovery in 2025

In 2025, the University maintained practical recycling and resource-recovery programmes while strengthening waste-service arrangements. The University of Newcastle 2025 Annual Report records the following initiatives and outcomes:

• A new Return and Earn machine at Callaghan collected 143,652 containers for recycling during 2025, diverting them from landfill.
• A new waste-services contract commenced in November 2025, including a dedicated Resource Recovery Officer to improve recycling performance.
• Food-organics collection expanded, with 12.84 tonnes of organic material collected at Edwards Hall and diverted from landfill in 2025.
• Between June and December 2025, reuse initiatives extended the life of 279 furniture items and diverted more than 6.6 tonnes of materials from landfill.

Simply Cups, soft-plastics recovery and resource-recovery kiosks also continued in 2025, providing further opportunities to separate waste and recover resources.

Long-term tracking and improvement

The University has collected multi-year waste and recycling figures to assess diversion and landfill disposal over time, numbers are shown below:

Updated policy and future direction

On 23 June 2026, the University introduced an updated Environmental Sustainability Policy. Its waste and recycling provisions now commit the University and its onshore controlled entities to establishing and implementing a circular-economy action plan to increase diversion of general solid waste from landfill, including recyclable, food, organic and garden vegetation waste. The revised policy also reinforces evidence-based targets, annual public reporting and continuous performance monitoring.

The University’s formal waste policy, monitoring and 2025 recovery programmes provide an ongoing basis for reducing landfill disposal. Its 2026 policy update strengthens the direction towards circular resource management.