The short answer
Asbestos never goes in a skip, a hard rubbish pile or a household bin, and no transfer station in Melbourne’s east takes it. A licensed asbestos removalist is the state’s advice. If you remove a small amount of firmly bound asbestos from your own home, wet it, double-wrap it in 0.2 mm plastic, label it and take it in your own vehicle to a landfill on EPA Victoria’s list, after calling ahead. None of those landfills is in the eastern suburbs.
Is it asbestos? Check the age of the house first
The Better Health Channel says “Australian homes built before 1990 may contain asbestos”: homes built before the mid-1980s are highly likely to contain it, homes from the mid-1980s to 1990 may, and homes built after 1990 are unlikely to. That covers a lot of the east, from the post-war weatherboards of Ringwood and Blackburn to the 1970s brick veneers of Wantirna and Mooroolbark.
It lists where firmly bound asbestos usually turns up in a home:
- Fibre cement (“fibro” or AC) cladding and some weatherboards
- Eave linings, bathroom wall linings and the underlay under tiles
- Vinyl floor tiles and coverings, and textured paint
Loosely bound (friable) asbestos, such as old pipe lagging or insulation in heaters, stoves and ceilings, was rarely used in homes, and the Better Health Channel recommends that “only a licensed professional remove loosely-bound asbestos”. You can’t tell asbestos by looking at it. If a bathroom or eave sheet might be asbestos, stop before you cut, drill or break it and get it tested. Knox Council gives the same advice: don’t cut or break it.
Who can remove it
Asbestos in Victoria, the state’s asbestos website, says to “Use a licensed asbestos removalist”, and WorkSafe Victoria lists them in its asbestos removalists directory. There are two licence classes: Class A removalists can remove friable and non-friable asbestos, and Class B removalists can remove non-friable asbestos only.
Householders aren’t barred from doing it themselves. Asbestos in Victoria says “Victorian law allows homeowners and some workers to remove very small amounts of asbestos in limited circumstances”, though it still recommends a licensed removalist for any amount. The Better Health Channel and the Australian Government’s householder guide (from the Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency) set out how: protective clothing and a suitable respirator, keeping the material wet, no power tools, and an asbestos-grade (Class H) HEPA vacuum for the dust. Asbestos in Victoria adds: never a household vacuum, even one with a HEPA filter.
The “10 square metres” rule isn’t a homeowner rule. Many websites say a homeowner can remove up to 10 m² without a licence. That limit comes from WorkSafe Victoria’s compliance code for workplaces: it lets an employer or self-employed person do “limited asbestos removal work” without a licence (no more than 10 m² of firmly bound material, and no more than an hour in seven days). The code says the workplace rules don’t apply to someone working in their own home, and Asbestos in Victoria gives homeowners no square-metre figure. If you’re paying a builder or handyman to remove it, the licence rules apply to them.
Wrapping it so a landfill will take it
EPA Victoria warns that “landfills will not accept” household asbestos that isn’t packaged properly. Asbestos in Victoria points householders to the Australian Government’s householder guide, which sets out the method:
- Keep the material wet until it’s wrapped and sealed, or bagged.
- Wrap it, offcuts, used rags and disposable protective gear included, in two layers of 0.2 mm (200 µm) plastic sheeting, or double-bag it in asbestos waste bags.
- Seal every package completely with tape.
- Put asbestos warning stickers on each package, or label it “ASBESTOS WASTE” in permanent marker.
Wollert Landfill sets its own rules for household loads: double-wrapped in heavy-grade builder’s plastic, 0.2 mm thick, with the joints taped, in packages one person can lift into its asbestos bin.
Where household asbestos can go from the east
EPA Victoria keeps the list of landfills licensed to take asbestos (reviewed June 2026). Household asbestos you carry in your own vehicle must go to a landfill authorised for domestic asbestos, and in that case “you do not need a permission to transport the asbestos waste” and don’t need to use EPA’s Waste Tracker. EPA also says domestic asbestos landfills “will only accept a small amount” and that you should “Contact the landfill before you transport and deliver your household asbestos”: a licensed landfill can still turn a load away, or ask you to book a time.
None of the listed sites is in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, and the Knox, Whitehorse, Monash, Coldstream and Lysterfield transfer stations don’t take asbestos. The nearest listed sites to the east are on the city’s fringe:
Landfills on EPA Victoria’s asbestos list around Melbourne
| Landfill | Where | EPA’s note |
|---|---|---|
| Hanson Landfill Services (Heidelberg Materials), Wollert | 45 Bridge Inn Road, Wollert | None; takes household asbestos at its transfer station |
| Australian Recycling Corporation | 500 Sunbury Road, Bulla | None |
| Mornington Peninsula Shire, Fingal | 280 Truemans Road, Fingal | Domestic only |
| Veolia, Taylors Road Landfill | 890 Taylors Road, Dandenong South | Commercial only: not for householders |
From EPA Victoria’s list of landfills licensed for asbestos waste (reviewed June 2026), checked 23 October 2026. EPA says these sites may not accept asbestos at all times: call before you go.
Household asbestos at Wollert Landfill
| Load | Published price | Who publishes it |
|---|---|---|
| Household asbestos under 0.5 t | $130.00 each | Wollert Landfill (Heidelberg Materials), GST included |
| Asbestos waste, Type 1 (non-friable sheets and pipes) | $260.00 per tonne, 0.5 t minimum | Wollert Landfill (Heidelberg Materials), GST included |
As the landfill publishes them, effective from 1 July 2026, checked 23 October 2026. Public access is from 7am on weekdays (to 4:45pm) and 7am to 3pm on Saturdays; it’s closed on Sundays.
Why asbestos can’t go in a skip
Asbestos in Victoria says “Don’t put asbestos waste in skips or household bins”, and EPA Victoria says it has to go to “a place authorised to receive it”. An ordinary skip goes to a transfer station or landfill that isn’t, which is why skip companies refuse it, and why what can go in a skip puts it first on the banned list. Skip companies return banned waste found at the tip (Yarra Valley Skip Bins, for one, charges a return fee), and the person who hired the skip has a duty to know their waste is going somewhere lawful.
Hard rubbish won’t take it either. Every council in the east excludes asbestos and cement sheet from its collection (see hard rubbish collection).
Common questions
Can I put asbestos in my wheelie bin or a skip?
No. Asbestos in Victoria says not to put asbestos waste in skips or household bins, and EPA Victoria says it must go to a place authorised to receive it. Ordinary skips go to transfer stations and landfills that aren’t.
Do I need a permit to take my own asbestos to the tip?
Not for household asbestos in your own vehicle: EPA Victoria says you don’t need a permission to transport it or to use Waste Tracker. It must be packaged properly and go to a landfill authorised for domestic asbestos, and you should call the landfill first.
How much does it cost to dump asbestos?
One published price: Wollert Landfill charges $130.00 for a household asbestos load under half a tonne, GST included. Other landfills set their own prices, and a licensed removalist’s price may include disposal; ask them to confirm.
Is there an asbestos tip in the eastern suburbs?
No. None of the landfills on EPA Victoria’s asbestos list is in the east, and the transfer stations at Knox, Whitehorse, Monash, Coldstream and Lysterfield don’t take it. The nearest listed sites are at Wollert, Bulla and Fingal.
What about the rest of my renovation waste?
Once the asbestos has been removed and taken away, the plaster, timber, tiles and cabinets can go in a builders skip. Mention that the job had asbestos in it when you ask, so nothing doubtful ends up in the skip.
Where this information comes from
The rules and prices on this page come from these published pages, checked on 23 October 2026.
- EPA Victoria: disposing of asbestos waste · State regulator guidance and list of landfills licensed for asbestos (list reviewed June 2026), page updated 23 September 2026
- Asbestos in Victoria: homeowner or renovator · Victorian Government asbestos website, updated 30 September 2026
- Asbestos in Victoria: safe removal steps · Victorian Government asbestos website, updated 15 September 2026
- Asbestos in Victoria: transport and disposal · Victorian Government asbestos website, updated 1 October 2026
- WorkSafe Victoria: asbestos removalists directory · State regulator’s list of licensed Class A and Class B removalists
- WorkSafe Victoria: compliance code, removing asbestos in workplaces · State regulator compliance code, edition 2, December 2019
- Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency: asbestos safety for householders and home renovators · Australian Government guide (PDF, March 2022), linked from Asbestos in Victoria
- Better Health Channel: asbestos in the home · Victorian Department of Health page, reviewed 15 October 2019
- Heidelberg Materials: Wollert Landfill · Landfill operator’s page: hours, asbestos rules and prices effective from 1 July 2026, GST included
- EPA Victoria: home renovation waste · State regulator guidance, updated 17 December 2024
- Yarra Valley Skip Bins: skip bin hire prices · Skip hire business, Dixons Creek (Yarra Ranges); price table by size, waste and weight limit, no visible date, GST not stated
- Knox City Council: A to Z waste guide · Council guide to where each item goes