Victorians have returned more containers than any other scheme in the country in the first year of the State Government’s Container Deposit Scheme (CDS Vic).
With a billion containers saved from landfill and $100 million back in the pockets of Victorians and charities, the government celebrated the milestone.
Since the scheme started on 1 November 2023, more than $950,000 has been raised for charities and community groups thanks to more than 4200 donation partners.
Victorians are recycling an average of 145 containers per return, with more than 26 million containers deposited the week following the AFL Grand Final – the biggest week of returns on record.
Before CDS Vic was launched, drink containers were one of the most littered items in Victoria.
Over the past 12 months alone, one-third of containers have been saved from landfill and recycled through the scheme.
The CDS has generated 597 direct jobs in Victoria in its first year. Of all the containers returned since the scheme started, about 50 per cent have been aluminium, 30 per cent plastic and 17 per cent glass, which are sorted and recycled into new bottles or other products.
To mark this achievement, CDS Vic created a ‘Message in a Bottle’ installation at Scienceworks that will teach students about the lifecycle of a bottle when returned through the scheme. The display features messages from Victorian primary students inside 320 recycled bottles and will be open to visitors until 27 January 2025.
Steve Dimopoulos, Minister for Environment, said Victorians have gone gangbusters for the Container Deposit Scheme.
“There are lots of things to celebrate on the one year of this scheme that gives back to the community, creates local jobs, teaches kids about recycling and safeguards our environment,” he said.
For more information: cdsvic.org.au
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