Around four million drink containers are landfilled or littered every day in New Zealand and ratepayers are footing the bill for it.
Zero Waste Aotearoa welcomes today’s announcement by NZ First and says a Container Return Scheme (CRS) is the practical fix: it shifts the cost of waste, recycling and litter clean up, from councils onto the producers responsible for it, while putting money back in the pockets of households and communities.
“We appreciate the leadership being shown by Jamie Arbuckle in putting this Container Return Scheme Bill forward. A well designed container return scheme will support local economies and reduce the burden that small communities with high tourist and visitor numbers face in providing recycling and litter services.”
Sue Coutts, External Affairs, Zero Waste Network, says the scheme is simple and it works.
“Return your empty container, get your deposit back, and make sure those materials can be used again. It’s a straightforward idea that puts money back in people’s pockets while massively reducing the number of bottle, cans and cartons that end up in our streets and landfills.”
Double recycling rates and halve litter
Currently only around 45% of drink containers are recovered through kerbside systems. The rest — around 1.25 billion containers a year — end up in landfill or as litter, with councils picking up the tab. A Container Return Scheme shifts that cost away from ratepayers and onto the manufacturers and importers who profit from selling drinks in single-use packaging. It is expected to reduce the cost burden on councils by $50 million every year.
“A well-designed scheme shifts costs away from ratepayers and onto producers, while creating real opportunities for households to get money back and for charities and community groups to benefit through fundraising. The Scouts in Thames, a South Auckland school and a Tairāwhiti community have run very successful ‘bottle drives’, collecting empty bottles, cans and cartons to claim a 20c deposit on each one. The 20c deposit is a great incentive to gather up and return empties,” says Coutts.
The public want it and the evidence shows it works
Support for a Container Return Scheme is broad and consistent. Around 80% of New Zealanders want one, with backing across all political parties, age groups and regions. Countries with well-designed schemes routinely achieve 85–90% recovery within three years. New Zealand’s scheme is designed to hit 85% by year three and 90% by year five.
The design is done. It’s time to act
New Zealand already has a locally-tailored scheme design based on international best practice, with five years of analysis and consultation behind it. The proposed scheme includes a 20-cent deposit per container, covers glass, plastic, metal and cartons, and uses a mixed return model with supermarkets and depots.
“The design is done, the public support is there, and the case is clear. Every day we delay, another four million containers go to landfill or end up as litter. It’s time to pass this.”
Background: zerowaste.co.nz/container-return-scheme/