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Give Back To The Planet And Community By Returning Your Empties This Month

By Alexandra Ainsworth
31st Jan 2023

If you’re anything like us, you’re all too familiar with the over-flowing empties pile at the end of a stunning Sunday arvo, because when the weather warms up there are few things better than having a cool bevvy in hand. But what if we told you that you could also be supporting local good causes while sipping those drinks? 

Whether you’re a tinnie gal or a kombucha kind of guy, this Empties Day, Saturday, 28 January, you can return all your 10¢ empties to one of your local Containers for Change refund points, and donate your 10¢ refund per container to a cause of your choosing. That means that not only will Empties Day be saving a heap of 10¢ containers from going to waste, it will also be giving back to the community. Sounds like a win-win to us. 

What Is Containers For Change?

Each summer roughly 420 million 10¢ containers are sold in WA, which can be returned for 10¢ a piece (that’s $42 million worth of 10¢ bottles, cans and cartons just waiting to be cashed in). And you would be surprised at how much the 10¢ containers that end up in local landfill can add up to—not only financially, but environmentally too. 

That’s why Containers for Change is dedicated to taking your empties and recycling them so they can live another life, curbing the amount of rubbish we’re putting into the planet. There are just a few steps involved in the process, and we’re going to walk you through exactly how you can get involved.

What Containers Are Accepted? 

Containers for Change recycles most single-serve water, juice boxes and alcohol containers (like beer bottles and pre-mixed spirits), plus any plastic water or fizzy drink containers up to 3L. If you’re ever in doubt, check for the 10¢ mark which will confirm whether or not it’s accepted. Make sure you remove any lids, as they’re recycled separately, then take it all to your local refund point—easy as!

Where To Take Them

There are over 260 refund points across WA for you to take your trash treasures to be refunded and recycled, so there’s sure to be one near you. You can find your closest refund point through the Containers for Change site, as well as a whole heap of extra info on how everything works. 

There is also a range of different refund points to suit how you’d like to return. If you’re looking for a quick stop you can visit a staffed depot, or you can opt for a bag drop if you’d like a convenient and contact-free option. There are also Reverse Vending Machines (RVMs) dotted around Perth, which count uncrushed containers by scanning their barcodes. And finally, you can keep an eye out for pop-up refund points that are set up in busy areas on a weekly, fortnightly, or monthly schedule.

So next time you crack a cold one, be sure to squirrel it away for Empties Day—your fave charity will thank you for it. For all the info on how to get involved, head over here

 

Image credit: Urban List

Editor’s note: This article is sponsored by Containers for Change and proudly endorsed by Urban List. Thank you for supporting the sponsors who make Urban List possible. Click here for more information on our editorial policy.

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