Tasmania’s container refund scheme is trialling a new approach to reduce litter, with collection baskets and racks now installed on public bins in several council areas across the state.
The Recycle Rewards baskets give people a place to leave eligible 10-cent drink containers rather than throwing them in the bin, allowing others to collect them and return them for a refund.
Baskets and racks are now in place in Launceston’s city parks and malls, Clarence at Kangaroo Bay, Meander Valley at Deloraine and Prospect, Waratah-Wynyard along the Wynyard foreshore and on King Island at Currie.
Hobart’s rivulet track and New Norfolk in the Derwent Valley are expected to follow soon, with more locations on the way thanks to strong interest from councils.
TasRecycle CEO and Recycle Rewards Scheme Coordinator Ken Roughley said the trial was about making recycling easier where people are most likely to drink on the go.
“We want to capture every used drink container to prevent recyclables from ending up in landfill or as litter in our environment,” Roughley said.
“The container basket trial gives people a quick, visible way to do the right thing when they’re on go.”
Instead of ending up in landfill, containers left in the baskets can be collected by anyone and taken to a Recycle Rewards refund point for 10 cents each.
The initiative also supports the circular economy by helping turn old drink containers into new ones.
The baskets are clearly marked for eligible containers only, including cans, bottles and cartons covered by the scheme.
General rubbish should still go in the main bin and other recyclables in the recycling bin.
The trial will run for four months, with Recycle Rewards and council staff monitoring use, contamination levels and recovery rates to assess the program.
Since launching in May 2025, Recycle Rewards has seen more than 145 million containers returned across the 51 return sites.
