Western Australian community groups and charities will share $10 million in refunds and handling fees thanks to the state-wide recycling program.
Containers for Change operates 256 container refund points across the state, with each refund point operator receiving a handling fee for every 10 cent container returned, and the public able to choose to donate their 10 cents to charities and community groups.
Tim Cusack, Containers for Change CEO, said the 2020-21 summer was the busiest time for container returns in the program’s first 12 months.
“We anticipate the same boost in returns over the next three months as the festive season gets underway and people buy and consume more beverages.”
Containers for Change has teamed up with Australia Post to give away thousands of green collector bags across 256 participating post offices.
“We want to make it as easy as possible for people to collect their 10 cent containers during the busy summer months, so they can then donate the refund to a community group or charity of their choice.
“With 256 refund points across the state, and 256 participating Post Offices giving out bags, we’re expecting to see hundreds of thousands of containers saved from landfill over the festive season.”
Since its inception in October 2020, Containers for Change has seen more than 800 million containers recycled and turned into new containers and other items including shows, kitchen foil, and pens.
“Any 10c containers that are lost to landfill during this period can never be recycled – while you might not need the 10c refund there are hundreds of community groups and charities out there who do,” said Cusack.