New WA Container Deposit Scheme Could Deliver up to $40M pa Boost for Social Enterprises

New WA Container Deposit Scheme Could Deliver up to $40M pa Boost for Social Enterprises

23 July 2018

The new WA Container Deposit Scheme commencing in 2020 will provide a 10cent deposit refund available to consumers on return of up to 1.3Billion eligible plastic bottle and cans to approved collection points in WA each year.

Announcing the new Scheme Coordinator, Minister Dawson said: “One of the first tasks is to run an open application process to establish the collection network..and support for social enterprises to participate”

Between now and September 2019, a procurement process will be open encouraging applications from WA Social Enterprises wanting to establish as Refund Points under the new Scheme which commences 1 June 2020.

Social Enterprise Refund Points will have to demonstrate employment outcomes for disadvantaged Western Australians, and with an estimated 6 cent processing fee for the Refund Point, this could create a potential new social enterprise funding opportunity of up to $40M per annum, based on just half of the 1.3B containers under the Scheme being returned.

The Container Deposit Scheme will offer different roles to play for Social Enterprises based on their interest and capacity. Below are some of the roles a Social Enterprises could play in the Scheme:

-REFUND COLLECTION POINT PROVIDER(responsible for the operation of Refund Points, including paying refunds to customers, counting and sorting the collected containers, prep of containers for pickup by Logistics/freight providers)
-LOGISTICS/FREIGHT PROVIDER(responsible for picking up Containers and transporting them to a Processing Provider)
-PROCESSING PROVIDER(who is responsible for verifying container numbers, preparing the containers for recycling, and selling processed materials via the WARRRL auction platform)
-DONATION POINT(an organisation that accepts gifts of Containers from the community)

If you are a WA based social enterprise or a WA not for profit organisation wanting to build new social enterprises through the scheme, register now.

More info and formal registrations of interest directly with Scheme Coordinator, WARRRL can be found here.

Through the WA Social Enterprise Mapping Project Impact Seed will also provide considered input to the Scheme Coordinator.  Registrations for the mapping project can be accessed here.