A stall in Stawell - adventures on corrugated dirt tracks, at the Stawell Easter festival and with emergency angle-grinding Big Bottle frame-fixing

We are on the road! "We" is myself and Travis from "Our Wonderful Country Clean Up Project". Travis offered his time, ute and services for this tour and we think he's an absolute legend! 

This whole campaign wouldn't be possible without the many donations and kind support we have received from so many Victorians! For instance, Ross and Ramona from Beach Patrol housed the Big Bottle over the last couple of months. They know how many drink containers are littered and they are tired of picking them up during their clean-ups. They are keen supporters of the Big Bottle tour because they know that Container Refund Schemes work.

I'm excited about this tour and I hope to take you guys with me - via this blog, by telling you about the people we'll meet, the issues and fun bits we'll encounter. Plenty of container litter on the A8, but we are on a mission to Stawell. Come and say hi to us tomorrow at the Stawell Street Festival!

Annett & The Big Bottle

> Go back to the Big Bottle Tour Blog

People just like you have built the Boomerang Alliance into a powerful force for change. Our efforts are making the difference that could save the environment for future generations to enjoy.

Sign up below to receive updates on our latest campaign actions, or volunteer with the Boomerang Alliance to help create the change we're working every day to achieve.

Be a part of a broad and diverse coalition fighting for Cash for Containers in Victoria.

Hundreds of community groups, charities and non-profit organisations around Australia added their name to the Cash for Containers campaign and were instrumental in our success in NSW, Queensland and WA. Now it is Victoria's turn - sign on today to endorse the Cash for Containers campaign in Victoria and help make Australia litter free.

Our Cash for Containers model is based on the best examples in the world and has benefits for the entire community, economy and environment. Read more about our model here and the benefits for your organisation here.

Whether you’re a local neighbourhood group, a major environmental NGO, a student organisation, school, small business or any other type of group, we’d love your support. If you are not part of any organisation, you can still support us by signing up here. 

Letter of support

WE SUPPORT BOOMERANG ALLIANCE’S CASH FOR CONTAINER MODEL BECAUSE WE BELIEVE IT WOULD HAVE SEVERAL BENEFITS FOR VICTORIA 

A 10-cent refundable container deposit scheme (cash for containers) will slash the amount of litter polluting our parks, streets, rivers and oceans. It will create jobs in recycling and provide valuable sources of income for charities, community groups and individuals interested in collecting cans and bottles.

We demand that Victoria acts now and adopts a container deposit scheme in line with what NSW started in December 2017, Queensland in November 2018 and which will commence in Western Australia early 2020. The time to act is NOW!

Victoria has now committed to a Container Deposit Scheme (CDS) to start by 2023. It needs to be the best scheme maximising recycling; with great convenience for consumers who want to redeem their 10cents; and a credible governance system.   

The Boomerang Alliance has joined forces with Victorian community organisations and groups to push for action. The Victorian government originally was defending inaction on CDS with questionable statistics on litter and recycling rates. We took actions to dispel myths, raise awareness and presented the true cost of inaction. 

NSWs 'Earn and Return' has collected over 5 billion containers in 36 months and increased recycling rates from 35% to over 70% under its ''split responsibility'' model with the independent Coordinator and Network Operator. This is supported by the Victorian government for the state's CDS. 

QLDs 'Containers For Change' which operates under the system favoured by Coca Cola has significant problems with inconvenient refund points; alleged fraud; and lower recycling rates.  Nevertheless, Coke and Lion have embarked on a campaign to reverse the government's position because they can make a profit from a poorly performing CDS by keeping consumer refunds.

NOW we need to win the battle for a CDS that works best for consumers and recycling.

SO, WHAT CAN YOU DO?

• Sign this letter to Lily D'Ambrosio thanking her for the CDS and maintaining her government's support for the BEST system.

• Sign up to our campaign and join us in clean-ups, media stunts and other actions

• Donate to our campaign

HOW DOES A CONTAINER DEPOSIT SCHEME WORK?

A container deposit scheme is based on a refundable deposit able to be redeemed by the consumer or collectors at convenient locations. In other words, people get cash for recycling their containers. There are over 40 such systems around the world including in South Australia, the Northern Territory, the ACT, NSW and Queensland. WA, Tasmania and Vic are planning to follow suit in 2020, 2022 and 2023, respectively. Enregistrer

Enregistrer

Your hard work is paying off! NSW, QLD, ACT and WA all have committed to introduce a deposit scheme on bottles and cans in the years to come. We now need your support to get Victoria to join them. It doesn't matter if you live in another state, taking action today will help protect our wonderful oceans and clean up Australia.