What a fantastic result! To date, a massive 50,100 units per month is currently being recycled at the Deposit Return point in Centra, Ferns. This figure is increasing month after month and is testament to the community helping to protect our environment by playing their part in leading us towards a more sustainable future by valuing our resources and increasing recycling rates.

What is the Deposit Return Scheme?

The Deposit and Return Scheme went live in February 2024 and is an exciting new, circular initiative which has transformed the way we think about empty drinks bottles and cans. The refundable deposit incentivises us to return these containers so producers can make new bottles out of old bottles and new cans out of old cans, saving materials, energy and reducing litter.

The Deposit Return Scheme works by charging anyone who buys a drink a small deposit for the plastic bottle or can that it comes in. Customers get this money back when they return the container to a retailer or other collection point to be recycled.

The scheme helps to tackle the estimated one billion plastic bottles and 1.6 million aluminium cans that are thought to currently end up in landfills/incinerators or littered in the environment.

We have noted a huge reduction in litter along our roads during our litter picks. We have also noticed an increase in members of the community stopping and picking up plastic bottles and cans from the street and doing a #2minutestreetclean. Another step to moving towards a cleaner and more sustainable Ferns.

As a Circular Economy Initiative the Deposit Return Scheme is helping the community to move away from the ‘take make and dispose’ culture to one of returning valuable materials, and keeping them in the economy for as long as possible.

Did You Know?

A plastic bottle can be recycled up to 7 times and aluminium cans may be recycled infinitely. The Deposit Return Scheme for single-use plastic bottles and cans allows consumers to return them for recycling and get a deposit back. This scheme encourages proper recycling and ensures a higher quality of recycled materials.

By reusing and recycling more effectively, we save energy and water, reduce landfill and there is a lower impact on the planet.