A billion kilograms of recycling in need of a new home

The scale of Australia's recycling crisis is twice as bad as initially feared, with new figures showing that well over a million tonnes of metal, paper and plastics previously sent to China now has to be accommodated elsewhere.

Chris Philp, general manager of Wheelie Waste,  amongst a
day's worth of recycling from the Victorian town of
Kyneton, population approximately 7000.

Such a vast amount of rubbish is hard to wrap your head around, so we've converted the figures to regular household recycling items. The illustrations are indicative only, because the range of materials recycled in each category is much broader and includes building waste, industrial packaging and many other types.

But this should give you some indication of the amount of rubbish we're talking about. Remember, this is material that was once exported to China that is now, largely, piling up at Australian waste centres.

Read the story by Mark Solomon from The Age - “A billion kilograms of recycling in need of a new home.”

Bottle and can deposit return scheme gets green light in England

All drinks containers in England, whether plastic, glass or metal, will be covered by a deposit return scheme, the government has announced.

 Deposit return schemes currently operate in 38 countries. 

The forthcoming scheme is intended to cut the litter polluting the land and sea by returning a small cash sum to consumers who return their bottles and cans.

Similar schemes operate in 38 countries, and campaigners have worked for a decade for its introduction in England.

Fees vary depending on the size of the bottle or can and many use “reverse vending machines” to automate the return.

Read Damian Carrington’s story from The Guardian - “Bottle and can deposit return scheme gets green light in England.”