Gold Coast Botanic Gardens begin recycling program

Visitors to Gold Coast Botanic Gardens can now recycle their waste thanks to the new recycling bins recently installed throughout the gardens.

Funded by the Gold Coast City Council and the Packaging Stewardship Forum (PSF) of the Australian Food and Grocery Council, 14 new dual waste and recycling bins carrying the national call to action, 'Do The Right Thing, Use The Right Bin', have been installed for use throughout the gardens.

The new bins will provide away from home recycling opportunities to over 200,000 visitors to the Botanic Gardens each year and divert up to 15 tonnes of recyclables from landfill annually ï¾ equivalent to more than 600,000 small plastic drink bottles.

Gold Coast Council Community and Cultural Development Committee Chair, Councillor Bob La Castra, explains "this is a great initiative which will assist in delivering Council's waste management strategy to reduce waste to landfill and also reduce littering of our parks and gardens.

"There is a growing expectation from the community for 'away from home recycling' facilities and the new waste and recycling bin stations at the Botanic Gardens are helping to make that expectation a reality. "

Councillor La Castra said a strong, ongoing partnership between the PSF and the Council had provided funding for the program.

General Manager of the PSF, Jenny Pickles, said that the initiative was an important step for recycling in Queensland and demonstrated a commitment by the beverage industry to increase beverage container recycling rates.

Pickles added "through well-placed bin infrastructure and promotion of the Do the Right Thing, Use the Right Bin message, the new recycling bins will make it just as easy for people to recycle away from home as it is at home."

The PSF is a forum of the Australian Food and Grocery Council. It works with government and industry partners across Australia to deliver recycling, litter reduction and education programs on behalf of its members, Australia's major beverage companies and their packaging suppliers. The Do the Right Thing Use the Right Bin call to action was developed jointly by the PSF and the Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management and supported by the Australian Packaging Covenant.

For more information contact Rachael Sneddon on 02 6270 9018, E: rachael.sneddon@afgc.org.au

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