The new facility will be capable of processing up to 115,000 tonnes of mixed recyclables per year.
02 September 2025
In brief:
- A new recycling facility for the ACT will be built in Hume.
- Demolition of the previous damaged recycling facility is underway.
- Veolia will partner with the ACT Government to design, build and operate the new facility.
- The new recycling facility is expected to be operational in 2028.
A new recycling facility for Canberra is a step closer with demolition of the previous damaged facility underway.
The new facility will be built on the former site of the previous facility in Hume, which was shut down at the end of 2022 due to extensive fire damage.
Construction of the new facility is due to begin in 2026.
Demolition of damaged facility
The previous recycling facility was shut down in 2022 due to extensive damage caused by a fire, believed to be caused by the incorrect disposal of batteries.
Demolition of the previous facility has begun and will take several months.
During the demolition, the public is advised to obey contractor exclusion zones and stay a safe distance away from the site.
A new state-of-the-art facility
Veolia will work with the ACT Government to design, build and operate the new, larger facility.
The new facility will be capable of processing up to 115,000 tonnes of mixed recyclables per year – up to 50,000 tonnes more per year than the previous facility.
The facility’s new advanced sorting technology, includes:
- sophisticated automatic recognition
- screens to separate paper
- laser optical identification with air jets to separate plastics
- powerful magnets to extract metals.
The facility has been designed with state-of-the-art fire detection, mitigation and control systems to safeguard the site from fires, which can be caused by items such as lithium batteries or gas bottles finding their way into the recycling stream.
Interim recycling
Until the new facility is built, there are no changes planned to current recycling management in the ACT.
The current contractor, Re.Group, will continue to manage interim recycling services for the ACT until the new facility is complete.
The new recycling facility is jointly funded by the Australian Government through the Recycling Modernisation Fund.
The new recycling facility is expected to be operational by 2028.
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