AXIS Worx social enterprise director Bill Schmidt said it had taken the Horsham site two and half years to process 20-million containers.
“To reach the milestone of 20-million is just fantastic for us as an organisation – it just shows that it is working,” he said.
“For us, one – it’s about employment for people with disabilities here, which is basically because of the support we get from the locals who come out here and recycle their containers.
“The biggest positive for us is the fact there’s 20-million not going to landfill, that’s one aspect of why we’re doing this.
“But secondly is that 20-million, what it relates to in a dollar-value is $2-million that our organisation and the scheme have given back to the community locally in just over two and a half years.
“We just hope that has been utilised through spend throughout the Wimmera and supporting all local businesses.
“From an organisation, we’re really pleased with how it’s all going with our automated depot.
“We can’t be thankful enough for all the support the community has provided us.”
Mr Schmidt said they had a lot of sporting groups and community groups use the facility, as well as people who use their own containers to make a donation to a registered community organisation, charity or sporting club.
“A lot of community groups and sporting groups are registered on the portal as a charity organisation, so a lot of people can either keep the money themselves, but if they’ve got a charity that they follow, then they can certainly donate to that charity as well,” he said.
Before CDS Vic launched, drink containers were one of the most littered items in Victoria, but now CDS Vic is helping to keep streets and parks clean, while also creating about 600 jobs in the recycling industry.
CDS Vic is giving people a chance to turn their recycling into cash through a Win A Million Cents competition, from May 4 to June 14, offering five chances to win $10,000 cash – or ‘one million cents’ – simply by returning eligible drink containers through the scheme.
One of the five lucky winners will win a bonus $10,000 to donate to a registered CDS Vic charity, school, or community group of their choice.
The competition rewards Victorians with one entry for every 50 eligible containers they return in a single transaction, whether they keep the refund or donate it to a CDS Vic charity partner.
Entry details, terms and conditions, and entry forms are available at winamillioncents.com.au.
People can find their nearest CDS Vic refund point at cdsvic.org.au.
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