Marrickville is now home to a new Return and Earn depot designed to make recycling large numbers of eligible bottles, cans and cartons easier than ever before.
The Marrickville Return and Earn Depot – the first depot and the 13th return point in the Inner West Council area– was officially opened with a celebration attended by local community groups and charities, including creative reuse centre Reverse Garbage.
The staffed depot can process up to 100 containers a minute, making it ideal for returning 500 or more containers at a time without the need to pre-sort containers.
The depot offers a ‘tag and drop’ service and features a drive-through layout, which allows recyclers with trucks and trailers to easily return large quantities of containers.
The Return and Earn machine in the car park also accepts all containers eligible for the 10c refund for recyclers with smaller amounts of drink containers.
Users can print a voucher for the refund amount, which can be redeemed at Coles for a discount on their shopping or for cash, or opt for an e-voucher or payment directly into their bank or PayPal account using the Return and Earn app.
Locals can also donate their refund to one of over 400 donation partners listed on the Return and Earn app, including Reverse Garbage, which is raising funds to promote reuse and sustainability to school students, and Maggie’s Rescue, which supports desexing programs to help stop the cycle of kittens born on the streets.
Marrickville Return and Earn Depot is located at 54 Smidmore St, Marrickville and is open daily from 7.00 am to 6.00 pm.
For more information on Return and Earn visit: www.returnandearn.org.au.
Quotes attributable to Jo Haylen MP, Member for Summer Hill:
“Inner Westies are enthusiastic recyclers, having returned over 235 million eligible bottles, cans and cartons through local return points since the scheme began in 2017.
“Thanks to the actions of our locals, our local parks and waterways are now much cleaner, and we have all contributed to the circular economy.”
“The new Return and Earn hub in Marrickville is a win for the Inner West. Inner Westies are proud to lead the way on sustainability, and this hub is another opportunity to show how local action can deliver big results for our community and our planet”
Quote attributable to James Dorney, CEO, network operator TOMRA Cleanaway:
“Marrickville has long been known for being a hub for the eco-conscious, with Reverse Garbage being in the area for over 50 years.
“This new Return and Earn depot provides another way for the community to engage with the circular economy.”
Quotes attributable to Danielle Smalley, CEO, scheme coordinator Exchange for Change:
“Return and Earn is not just a program helping achieve a cleaner and sustainable environment, it also delivers significant social benefits to the community as a key fundraising channel for so many charities and community groups in NSW.
“Over $82 million has been raised from donations and fees from hosting return points since the scheme launched in 2017.”