Hackney Council claims to be the first local authority to install a reverse vending machine, as part of its efforts to improve the recycling rates both in flats and on estates.
Supplied by Unisan, the new machine was installed on an estate in Hoxton and rewards those who use it by providing vouchers in exchange for recycling cans and plastic bottles. The vouchers that are rewarded will enable the residents to claim money reductions at two nearby shops.
They are starting the process with a three-month trial that is taking place in partnership with both the estate's tenants and the resident's association. The trial will assess the potential for these reverse vending machines to be used as a realistic way to boost the recycling rate on various estates. Hackney has said that this would reduce the amount of residual waste that is sent to landfill, as well as reducing the carbon footprint of Hackney's waste system.
The pilot machine will also help the London Borough to correctly establish how any future governmental proposals to introduce a national deposit return scheme (DRS) could operate in Hackney, and subsequently how effective they are.
Councillor Jon Burke, the Cabinet Member for Energy, Sustainability and Community Services, said "while recycling is by no means the complete solution to our hugely wasteful system of consumption, it is far preferable to the alternative methods of disposal".
"By ensuring that recyclable materials are given an economic value, reverse vending has the potential to divert significant amounts of waste away from landfill, and incineration, reduce virgin resource depletion, stimulate the circular economy, and then materially benefit the public".
Unisan said the reverse vending machine is part of a variety of interventions which hope to increase the rates of household recycling in some of Hackney's estates. Other measures include delivering a 'green champion' scheme and adding 150 bins to the housing estates that are owned by the local authority.
Burke highlighted the importance of positioning the reverse vending machine in an area with heavy traffic, and in a public setting. He said "while a small number of reverse vending trials have been undertaken by large supermarkets within their premises, we believe that estates and large apartment complexes have significant potential as reverse vending locations in an environment where people are increasingly conducting smaller food shopping trips and visiting the supermarkets less frequently".
There are currently no tonnage targets for the machine, as the initial trial is hoping to monitor the amount of waste recycled at the housing block.
