NSW announces container deposit scheme

Cans for recycling
Following months of consultation and deliberation, the NSW Government has confirmed it will introduce a South Australia-style 10 cent refund container deposit scheme (CDS) next July.

NSW Premier Mike Baird and Environment Minister Mark Speakman announced the decision on Sunday (8 May)
The NSW CDS will apply to most drink containers between 150ml and three litres, which will display NSW CDS labelling.

Commenting on the new CDS, Mr Baird said: “The scheme we are announcing today is the single largest initiative ever undertaken to reduce litter in NSW. Giving people a financial incentive to do the right thing and recycle drink containers will help
to significantly reduce the estimated 160 million drink containers littered every year.”

Under the scheme, individuals who return an empty eligible beverage container to an approved NSW collection depot or reverse vending machine will be eligible for a 10-cent refund. A network of depots and reverse vending machines will open across NSW to receive the empty containers.

Funding of the 10 cent refund, as well as the associated handling and administration fees will be provided by beverage suppliers.

The CDS is expected to form a significant part in achieving the Premier’s priority to reduce the volume of litter by 40 per cent by 2020.

The announcement was welcomed by a number of environmental lobbying groups and parliamentarians. Leader of the ACT Greens Shane Rattenbury said that it would make sense for the ACT to move quickly to join with NSW to introduce a CDS.

Mr Speakman will appoint an implementation working group and bring forward the draft legislation to establish the scheme ahead of its launch in July 2017. More information on the NSW CDS is available on the EPA NSW website.

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