Many community sharps such as needles, syringes and lancets enter the mainstream waste and recycling bins, exposing Council staff, contractors and the public. Others are sometimes left lying on the ground or in buildings, posing a risk to our community.

Central Coast Council Waste Services has a programme designed to collect community sharps. Community sharps are defined as “sharps that are generated by community members through self-administered healthcare or recreation”. This includes needles, syringes, lancets and prickers resulting from self-injection at private residences and or in public places over various locations across the Local Government Area of the Central Coast of NSW. It does not include disposal of commercially created volumes such as those generated by vaccination programmes or by veterinary practices, which must be disposed of via commercially available solutions.

If you inject drugs you can dispose of your used needles and syringes in disposafit bins located in Public Hospitals, Council amenity buildings and Council Parks and Reserves.

If you have found a needle or syringe in a public place, please call the Needle Clean Up Hotline on 1800 NEEDLE (1800 633 353).

If you use needles, syringes or lancets for a medical condition, you can take these items in a puncture-resistant container to any Public Hospital for safe disposal or to the following pharmacies: