The City of Melbourne’s Syringe Management Action Plan forms part of the Strategy for a Safer City 2007-2010, which guides our approach to needle and syringe disposal.
The City of Melbourne provides a range of free services to residents and businesses to ensure that needles and syringes are disposed of safely. These include:
- approximately 400 syringe disposal bins, located across the municipality (including in all public toilets) and serviced regularly
- daily weekday clean up of any syringes in public spaces
- fast, on-call, responsive collection of inappropriately discarded syringes
- safe syringe disposal container exchange service at Council
- safe syringe handling training seminars
- safe syringe disposal DVD.
Syringe disposal bin locations
Syringe Disposal Bin Locations (PDF, 623kb)
If you find a discarded needle and syringe
If you find an inappropriately discarded syringe in the City of Melbourne, contact us on (03) 9658 9658 to arrange for immediate free disposal.
To arrange disposal outside the City of Melbourne, or outside of business hours, contact the Victorian Syringe Disposal Helpline on 1800 552 355 (free call from a landline), 24 hours, seven days a week.
You may feel confident enough to dispose of the syringes yourself. Disposal containers and DHS guidelines on safe disposal can be obtained free of charge from the City of Melbourne.
Do not dispose of needles and syringes in rubbish or recycling bins, drains or toilets, even if the needle and syringe is inside a bottle or plastic container.
If you have a needle-stick injury
If you receive a needle-stick injury, do not panic. Your risk of contracting a blood-borne virus is extremely low.
Following an injury, immediately rinse the wound with flowing water, and then wash well with soap and water. Cover the wound with a band-aid and seek medical attention to assess your risks of bacterial and blood-borne virus infection. Where possible, retrieve the syringe for testing or disposal, or isolate the area to prevent others from injuring themselves.
For more information or support, call the Disposal Helpline on 1800 552 355 (free call from a landline), 24 hours, seven days a week.
Syringe container pick-up and drop-off service
The City of Melbourne provides a free syringe disposal container exchange service for people who need to dispose of syringes. The containers are made of yellow plastic and are available in three sizes: small (250ml; holds about 10 syringes); medium (1.8 litre; holds about 100 syringes); and large (5 litre; holds 250-300 syringes).
Pick up
Containers can be collected and returned in person between 8am and 5pm Monday-Friday at the City of Melbourne offices at Level 3, 200 Little Collins Street Melbourne. There is a self-service disposal chute and cupboard of new containers in the reception area. No receptionist is present, but an internal phone and contact details for relevant staff are provided in case you would like further information or support. This is a confidential service. No appointment is necessary however you will need to get an access pass from the ground floor Concierge.
Drop off
Where customers are unable to visit in person within these hours, arrangements can be made for containers to be delivered and picked up free of charge from private properties within the City of Melbourne. This is also a confidential service.
Please Note: neither of these services are offered to businesses who regularly generate their own biological/sharps waste (for example: hairdressers, tattooists, GPs, health centres, acupuncturists, etc).
Syringe bins for business program
The City of Melbourne also supports businesses to safely manage and dispose of syringe related waste. In line with this support, the City of Melbourne is offering to provide and install up to three syringe disposal bins free of charge to eligible businesses in the municipality. Each bin supplied and installed is valued at approximately $120.
When installed in businesses, syringe bins also improve occupational health and safety and reduce risk and exposure to public liability.
Eligible businesses are those which:
- have toilets or similar facilities frequented by the public such as restaurants/cafes, carparks, licensed venues, shopping malls, cinemas, churches, community centres, tourist sites, train/bus stations, universities, gyms
- do not currently have syringe bins installed
- agree to service the bins at their own cost for at least one year
Register for the syringe bins for business program
- Contact the City of Melbourne on (03) 9658 9658 to register your interest. The syringe management officer will then be in touch to arrange a site visit and meeting.
- If the site is appropriate, you will be advised how many bins can be installed and when installation is likely to happen.
- In order to finalise the installation of the free bins, you will need to provide evidence of an appropriate servicing contract, which specifies the contractor, the servicing schedule and costs, and a minimum one year servicing contract.
For more information about the program contact the City of Melbourne on (03) 9658 9658.
Safe syringe disposal kits
Each kit contains:
- a DVD or video on syringe handling and disposal
- a map of disposal bin locations
- DHS guidelines on safe syringe disposal; key contact numbers
- a small plastic syringe disposal container with gloves
These kits can be posted to residents and businesses in the City of Melbourne.
Safe syringe training seminars
Seminars are available free for City of Melbourne businesses and community organisations who would like more information on the safe handling of syringes. Seminars are approximately 1.5 hours long and cover harm minimisation, blood-borne virus risks, safe syringe disposal and needle-stick injury. Recommended group size is 5 to 25 people.
Alternatively, you can request a copy of the Safe Syringe Disposal DVD by calling the City of Melbourne on (03) 9658 9658.
More information
Information and support is also available by contacting:
For more information on the City of Melbourne’s Syringe Management Plan visit the Strategy for a Safer City 2007-2010.