Container collection: 'Good for the environment and good for the kids'

Every club has the power to be change-maker in the community and Easts Juniors Rugby League Club has been getting their hands dirty in a bid to lead the way.

Not only has a four-year partnership with Containers for Change enabled president Peter Talbot and a raft of volunteer committee members to help create a better future through recycling drink containers, it has provided a handy revenue stream to support football activities for nearly 500 junior players.

Tigers players recently starred in the Containers for Change advertising campaign ‘Cheers to the Change Makers’ to showcase the benefits for clubs to raise funds by collecting drink containers.

Talbot said it was easy to get involved and take steps to constantly remind the more than 2000 people through their gates every game day to participate and make a difference.

“We’ve got a number of bins that we get from our local Containers for Change operator and we scatter them around the field beside the normal bins and during the course of then we make announcements over the PA to ask people if they can assist us in recycling bottles and cans into the yellow-top bins,” Talbot said.

“When we get to the end of the week we actually get in and pull out all the bottles and cans in our general waste bins as well.

“When (the bins) are full we just ring them up, they come and collect them and give us some more bins and they deposit the money, which we use for additional equipment.”

Talbot said the club had made “a few thousand dollars” and cut their waste by one third thanks their partnership with Containers for Change.

“We probably get $300 to $400 an empty. It’s a fair bit of money for not much effort. It’s good for the environment and good for the kids,” Talbot said.

The environment focus has since inspired the Tigers to further reduce their carbon footprint by hosting dedicated cardboard recycling facilities at the club.

Tigers’ Under 13 player Cooper Young said it was full on to be part of the filming of the Cheers for the Change Makers campaign and said the club’s involvement in Containers for Change made his family more aware of the importance of recycling at home.

For more information about how easy it is to raise money by simply collecting empty drink containers, visit the Containers for Change website.