Each year, millions of containers are returned through Return and Earn, preventing them from littering our environment and saving energy by keeping them out of landfills. It also puts money back into community groups and sporting clubs.
Super Collectors like Pooraka Bottle and Can Recycling Centre take bottles that qualify for the 10c refund under the State government’s Container Deposit Scheme. They prepare the eligible recycling bottles, ensuring they have their lids off. For more information about plastic bottle recycling Adelaide, click here.
Benefits
Plastic recycling means the bottles and containers you no longer need get melted down and turned into new products. The bottles and containers can be remade into anything from polar fleece to fence posts. The coloured bottle with the triangle and number inside (1 to 7) on your water, soft drink or juice bottle displays the plastic identification code and indicates the type of plastic used to make it. Different types of plastic melt at different temperatures and go through a slightly different recycling process.
Plastic recycling through the container deposit schemes (CDS) run in every state and territory of Australia saves a lot of natural resources. For example, when one ton of PET plastic is recycled instead of made from raw materials, it holds 3.8 barrels of oil and produces fewer greenhouse gases. It keeps our landfills and waterways clean and helps consume the world’s limited oil supply.
As a result, it’s best to buy only plastic products that are 100% recyclable. But if that’s not possible, make sure you recycle the plastics you do have. It can take up to 700 years for a single plastic bottle to break down in the environment, so recycling is the best option for the earth.
At Pooraka Bottle and Can Recycling Depot, we accept all plastic drink containers that qualify for the 10c refund under the SA/NT government container deposit scheme. However, we ask that all lids be removed first. It speeds up the sorting and processing process and helps us pay your refunds much quicker.
Plastic bottles are separated by their PET codes, which can be found stamped on the bottom of each one with a triangle with a number inside (1 to 7). The PET code indicates it is made from polyethylene terephthalate (PETE or PET for short). It is recyclable into new water bottles, carpet fibre, t-shirts, industrial strapping, fiberfill for pillows and sleeping bags.
Recycling Depots
Plastic bottle recycling in Adelaide is hugely important to our sustainability efforts. It reduces new plastic entering our ecosystems and helps prevent pollution that kills marine life. Container deposit schemes (CDS) are a great way to recycle bottles and cans and are available in every state and territory in Australia.
Plastic bottles that qualify for the CDS can be returned at locations across South Australia. These include all Return-It points operated by Coca-Cola and most major retailers that support the scheme. You can choose to keep your refund or donate it to charity. For more information about plastic bottle recycling Adelaide, click here.
Metal lids and neck rings can remain on the bottles but cannot be recycled separately as they are too small for the machinery used in most households’ yellow-lid recycling bins to pick up – they should go into your red-lidded rubbish bin instead. Alternatively, you can place the lid in a clear plastic bag and hand it to places that recycle plastic bottle lids. The covers are then repurposed into other products, including fencing, tubing and crates.
Making Money
Depending on where you live, you can make anywhere from five to ten cents for every bottle, or you can recycle. It is because plastics have become very valuable and are being reused in various ways.
A great way to help the environment whilst making some extra cash is to separate glass from plastic bottles, cartons and cans before taking them to your local bottle recycling centre. It will speed up the process and prevent any unnecessary contamination of your bottles. Start your journey now with plastic bottle recycling.