Beach Patrol Australia calls for deposit scheme as rubbish mounts on Port Phillip beaches

BEACH patrol crews are struggling to cope as thousands of cans and bottles are dumped on Port Phillip beaches — and they say a cash-for-cans scheme is the obvious solution.

Port Melbourne Beach Patrol members Gloria Reed, Luke Simpkin, Bruce Leslie, Ramona Headifen, Matt Bolden and Ross Headifen. Picture: Chris Eastman

MORE than 80kg of rubbish has been cleared from a Port Melbourne beach already this year, sparking a renewed push for a ‘cash-for-cans’ scheme.

Beach Patrol Australia vice-president and Port Melbourne group leader Ross Headifen said bottles and cans made up the bulk of rubbish strewn along Port Phillip beaches.

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“We got 221 (bottles and cans) on our clean-up two weeks ago, just off Port Melbourne beach,” he said.

“The Mentone crew picked up 500 — an insane number, it’s madness.”

Mr Headifen said a container deposit scheme, paying 10c for each container, would give people a financial incentive to recycle their containers and reduce waste.

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Cans and bottles made up about 40 per cent of all litter collected by Beach Patrol crews, he said.

“Victoria is the last big state to hold out (on introducing a container deposit scheme),” Mr Headifen said.

If a scheme had been in place, the Mentone Beach Patrol group would have made $50 from their recent clean-up efforts.

“But (the containers) probably wouldn’t have been there in the first place because they only have a life on the ground of a couple of hours before somebody picks them up,” Mr Headifen said.

And he said the scheme would also help community groups and the homeless raise money, he said.

“Victoria is the last major state to take any initiative on this, which is very disappointing,” he said.

“It has to happen because the numbers are just staggering; Beach Patrol alone picked up 2400 bottles and cans last year.”

Plastic straws, bottled tops, chocolate bar wrappers and cling wrap were also wreaking havoc on the marine environment, Mr Headifen said.

“We want people to think about their use of plastic — you don’t need a plastic straw, you can get paper ones; use a reusable water bottle instead of buying a plastic bottle,” he said.

“Those are simple things that would make huge differences to what we’re seeing in the ocean.”

The group also supports a ban on single-use plastic bags.

But a spokesman for Environment Minister Lily D’Ambrosio, David McNamara, said a container deposit scheme was not cost efficient for Victorians.

“A container deposit scheme would increase costs to Victorians well beyond the benefit to the environment,” he said.

Local councils would also lose out on money made through kerbside recycling services if the scheme went ahead, Mr McNamara said.

And according to the Keep Australia Beautiful National Litter Index, Victoria had the lowest litter count in the country for the fifth year in a row, down 27 per cent of the last year.

Mr McNamara said the State Government would invest $32 million in waste management over the next four years, including the Litter Innovation Fund for projects aimed at reducing litter in “new and innovative ways”.

Mr Headifen said volunteers were always needed across its five Port Phillip sites, particularly South Melbourne.

Details: beachpatrol.com.au

CONTAINER DEPOSIT SCHEMES

● South Australia — introduced 1977

● Northern Territory — introduced 2012

● New South Wales — to launch 2017

● Queensland — expected 2017/18

● Western Australia — supports national scheme

● Tasmania — ongoing debate

● Victoria — against

Source: Boomerang Alliance