Vinnies keen to recycle unwanted or unsuitable items

Of the 1800 tonnes of clothing, textiles and other materials (furniture, electrical goods, books and miscellaneous items) that St Vincent de Paul Society Tasmania (Vinnies) receives annually, 358 tonnes are sent to landfill.

Chief Operating Officer Les Baxter said the organisation was exploring a collaboration with the Centre for Sustainable Materials Research and Technology at the University of NSW to address the issue and reduce what Vinnies sends to landfill.

“We are keen to collaborate with UNSW and explore value-added opportunities for utilising waste streams from products and materials donated to Vinnies,” he said.

“We will also evaluate these potential options and prepare business cases for suitable opportunities.”

Dr Baxter said Vinnies had very positive discussions around using proven messaging that helped communicate recycling and circular economy principles to those who made donations.

“Put simply, we want to reduce the often costly and harmful impacts of waste product donations to charity organisations like ours through education,” he said.

“We do not believe that all waste product is donated knowing that it will end up in landfill.

“Through education, we are aiming for the donators to take ownership of the donation grading process and imagine how donated items might be re-used.”

While the issue of “waste” is a year-round issue, waste product donated to Vinnies charity retail stories over the holiday season is higher than normal.

Dr Baxter said some retail teams reported being unable to access shops after the Christmas closure period because of the mountain of soiled donations dumped by the public.

“Vinnies stores are often overwhelmed with donations that are unusable because of damage, contamination or excessive wear and tear,” he said.

“These unusable items quickly clog donation processing channels and cost Vinnies, in spite of the Tasmanian Government’s Charitable Recycler Rebate Program, thousands of dollars annually in disposal fees, impacting the overall fundraising efforts of the Society.”