Queensland’s container refund scheme, Containers for Change, has now been in effect for just over two weeks and figures are showing more and more Queenslanders are embracing the recycling initiative.
Minister for Environment and the Great Barrier Reef Leeanne Enoch said more than 17 million containers had been returned through the scheme so far.
"These are amazing results for Queensland’s new scheme," Ms Enoch said.
"Queenslanders are able to get 10 cents back for recycling their containers, and $1.7 million in refunds has already gone back to Queenslanders, community groups and charities."
Minister Enoch said Queensland was one of the country’s worst performers in recycling, which is why schemes like Containers for Change are important in creating incentives to change behaviour.
"It is obvious from these results that Queenslanders care about recycling, and want to improve how they manage waste.
"At the two week mark on Thursday, our figures were almost three times higher than what NSW recorded when their scheme first started. In the first two weeks of the NSW scheme, about 5 million containers were returned, and we had about 15 million on that day.
"Queensland is continuing to show up our rivals south of the border."
Ms Enoch said the figures will only increase from here.
"This is also just the beginning of the scheme, and these figures will continue to grow as more Queenslanders get on board and get containers for change."
Community organisation HELP CEO Greg Luck says that the partnership with Return-It, which is operating container refund points, has been able to help place people who have been out of the workforce for an extended time period back into paid employment.
"Through our partnership with Return-It QLD, we have been able to place people who have been out of the workforce for an extended period, for a number of different reasons, back into paid employment, and for us there is no better feeling than helping Australians bring a sense of value to their own lives through paid employment," said Mr Luck.
"We are excited to be a part of the Containers for Change scheme in Queensland, via Return-It and are very appreciative to place people who need and want the work into different jobs with Return-It.
"This initiative complements HELP’s initiative to provide tailored employment solutions to job seekers and employers in Australia, and we are proud to partner with Return-It Queensland."
Return-It Managing Director, David Singh is proud that one of its partnerships is with HELP.
"HELP plays an integral part in helping so many in our community. I think many people will opt to donate their refunds to this worthy organisation," Mr Singh said.
"Return-It benefits the customer, the community and the environment, and we can’t wait to see how the partnership with HELP grows."
This week marks National Recycling Week and Minister Enoch said it was a timely reminder to think about how Queensland can increase recycling and improve waste in other areas.
"This can include creating a compost for food scraps, recycling soft plastics, and jumping online to find where you can recycle other items like computers, phones, pain and white goods."
