Crossborder rustlers rort NSW drink container refund scheme

OLIVIA CAISLEY
OCTOBER 8, 2018
THE AUSTRALIAN
Used drink containers are being driven by the truckload into NSW from Queensland and Victoria in an organised bid to rort a container deposit scheme by claiming a 10c deposit for bottles and cans bought outside the state.
Supermarkets on the NSW side of the border have called for an independent inquiry into the container deposit scheme, declaring it is costing them hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Bob Matthews, who owns four IGA stores along the NSW-­Victoria border, said he had seen semi-trailers with Victorian registration plates pull up at the Return and Earn scheme vending machine at his East Albury store to deposit their loads.
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“There is product coming to NSW in bulk. Semi trailers are coming to NSW and some people are making a lot of money out of it,’’ Mr Matthews said. “I want an inquiry. Why is it being rorted?’’
Geoff Provest, the ­Nationals member for Tweed in the northern NSW border town of Tweed Heads, said he supported the scheme but there was “no doubt” it had prompted “semi-professionals” to travel across the border from Queensland in order to claim the refunds.
Supermarket managers along the Victorian-NSW border told The Australian theywere cutting their profit margins to prevent customers shopping south of the Murray River. Since December 1, beverage companies in NSW have charged customers an extra 10c a drink “deposit” as well as several cents to cover the costs of the program.
This deposit can be reclaimed by visiting one of the state’s 682 return points. To date, 777 million cans and bottles have been ­returned.
Mr Matthews said he had ­absorbed the increase in drink prices so as to deter his customers from shopping in Victoria, which did not operate a container deposit program.
He showed The Australian pictures of a long queue of cars, ­bearing Victorian number plates, parked outside the Return and Earn machine at his East Albury store.
The supermarket owner said his cashflow has been crippled by cashing-in Return and Earn vouchers obtained by those using the vending machine outside his store. “We’re in a fair bit of trouble,” he said. “I’m effectively subsidising the NSW government to the tune of $35,000-$45,000 in terms of cashflow each week and we’re having to wait at least 10 days to be reimbursed.”
Jason Martin, who owns Mulwala Foodworks supermarket on the NSW side of the Murray River, said he had lost $150,000 since the scheme began.
“We’re of the opinion the scheme cannot be undone, so ­really what is required is a federal government approach, where Victoria joins the scheme to balance out inequality on each side of the border,” he said.
Mr Provest said despite initial teething problems, ­Return and Earn was “very popular” with the local community.
Queensland is scheduled to roll out a similar refund scheme next month, which may ease some of the pressure from north of the Tweed River. There is speculation Victoria and Western Australia may follow suit.
“Most days there are huge queues,” Mr Provest said. “But we imagine when the Queensland scheme rolls out, it’ll slow down.”
The NSW Environment Protection Authority told The Australian that while it was an offence to claim a refund on a container that was not purchased in NSW, it wasn’t illegal for a person from another state to redeem a container they had purchased in NSW.
“With the recent introduction of the ACT container deposit scheme and the Queensland scheme soon to commence, any potential cross-border issues are likely to be negated at those locations,” a spokeswoman said.
“Any evidence about cross­border bulk redemptions should be reported to the EPA.”
NSW Labor said the scheme had cost $291.6 million since its ­inception, but the EPA disputed that, citing seasonal variability and ongoing adjustments to container volumes. It did not provide an actual cost when asked by The Australian.
While the affected business owners were unanimous in saying “no one wants to prevent recycling”, doubts have been raised about why it was introduced. ­Announced in 2015 by then-premier Mike Baird, the program aimed to reduce the “volume of litter” in NSW by 40 per cent by 2020. Keep Australia Beautiful figures show just 9 per cent of all pieces of public litter in NSW are the type of container accepted through the scheme, provided they are “uncrushed, unbroken and have the original label ­attached”.
Labor environment spokeswoman Penny Sharpe said while the opposition supported a container deposit scheme, “the botched rollout” had cost businesses and consumers.
NSW Environment Minister Gabrielle Upton said Return and Earn was a highly successful litter reduction program, which had provided an incentive for the public to recycle drink containers.
“If people choose not to use the collection points to get their deposit back, they can put their drink containers in kerbside recycling,” she said.