Uralla Shire Council Acting General Manager David Aber, left, The Trader Store owner Nathan Whitton and Northern Tablelands MP Adam Marshall announcing the establishment of an over the counter Return and earn collection point in Uralla this morning.
Tuesday, 24 December 2019
FROM early next month Uralla residents will have local access for the first time to the State Government’s Return and Earn recycling program, with an over the counter service starting at The Trader Store, Northern Tablelands MP Adam Marshall announced today.
Since last Wednesday, around 40,000 bottles of water a day has been trucked into Uralla to provide residents with potable water, while Uralla Shire Council works to bring high arsenic levels in the town supply back in-line with Australian standards.
Mr Marshall said the establishment of the Return and Earn collection point, opening on Monday, 6 January, would mean the dramatic increase in plastic waste caused by bottled water was not a burden council would have to deal with.
“Securing a Return and Earn outlet for Uralla has been the one silver lining which has resulted from this water contamination issue,” Mr Marshall said.
“From Monday, 6 January 2020, residents can turn up to The Trader Store with up to 100 bottles per day and a store assistant will count the containers and issue a cash refund.
“With every eligible bottle worth 10 cents, this is a great opportunity for some enterprising local youngsters to make some extra pocket money these school holidays while at the same time do their bit for the town and the environment.”
Mr Marshall urged to the community to be patient while the Return and Earn collection point was in its infancy.
“Since last week we’ve seen around 240,000 individual plastic bottles trucked into Uralla, which will all need to be disposed of,” he said.
“When the service comes online in the New Year there will be a lot of traffic going through The Trader Store, which is also a popular café, so I encourage residents to be calm, patient and allow staff to do their jobs when they do arrive with their bottles.
“Even after regular water services in Uralla resume the Return and Earn will remain operating, meaning people will no longer have to travel to Armidale to get their bottles refunded.
“I really want to thank Nathan and Tara Whitton and the team from The Trader Store for putting their hands up to host Return and Earn at their business.”
The Trader Store Return and Earn will commence operation from Monday, 6 January between the hours of 2pm and 4.30pm every Monday to Friday and 9am to 12pm each Saturday.
You can find a list of the bottles accepted through Return and Earn by visiting www.returnandearn.org.au/how-it-works/containers/