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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-10-29 Daily Xml
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Ministerial Statement

CONTAINER DEPOSIT LEGISLATION

The Hon. M.D. RANN (Ramsay—Premier, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Social Inclusion, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Sustainability and Climate Change) (14:09): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. M.D. RANN: We all know that South Australia's container deposit legislation—like our ban on non-reusable plastic bags—is leading Australia in the fight against litter and reducing rubbish in our landfill, waterways, parks and roadsides. Container deposits were introduced in South Australia in 1977 and, until a year ago, the deposit of 5¢ per drink container item had been paid when they were returned to a recycling depot.

Millions and millions of containers, which would otherwise have made their way into landfill, or just left on roadsides or in waterways, have been returned to recycling depots over the past 32 years. It was a very simple and innovative piece of legislation that has been a clear and obvious success, yet no other states in Australia have taken it up, which still astonishes most people in this state.

I am told that the nation's environment ministers will gather in Perth next month and that our Minister for Environment and Conservation will again be taking it up with his counterparts. As part of his presentation, the minister will also be presenting the latest figures on the success of this legislation to the meeting.

A year ago, this government doubled the deposit on drink containers from 5¢ to 10¢. Representatives of the beverage industry considered this to be a controversial move. They thought that the increase was the wrong way to go, which is exactly what they thought 32 years ago when the original legislation was introduced. Nothing could be further from the truth.

The latest figures show that return rates increased significantly in the first full year after the refund increased from 5¢ to 10¢. Do you remember that people said it would not make any difference? Well, here are the figures. The total number of containers returned in the first full year of the 10¢ refund was about 77 million more than the number returned in 2007-08. So an extra 77 million containers were picked up as a result of going from 5¢ to 10¢.

I am informed that those who collect and recycle drink containers returned nearly 600 million containers, which equates to more than 48,000 tonnes of containers that are not going to landfill. Incidentally, this has returned to those who recycled their containers more than $59 million in refunds between 1 September 2008 and 31 August 2009. That is, by the way, a $33 million increase in refunds over the previous financial year. So, clubs, charities, scout and guide groups, football clubs, netball clubs—a whole range of charities—have picked up an extra $33 million on the previous year.

This is good news for all those charities and clubs that collect cans for pocket money and of course it is even better news for our environment. The return rate has increased to 77.7 per cent, which is up 7.7 per cent on the average return rate for the previous three years and, according to the minister, some individual depots are reporting anecdotally that ongoing return rates are even higher.

There is no question that South Australia's container deposit legislation works, and it works outstandingly well. South Australians have a right to feel proud about this initiative, as they have a right to feel proud about the ban on non-reusable plastic bags. Let us hope that the other states have the guts as well as the foresight to do the same.

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