Tamworth Regional Council stands to make over $300,000 a year from the Container Deposit Scheme (CDS), although Challenge are hopeful of striking a deal to see that money go towards helping youths at risk.
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Since the CDS launched last year Challenge Community Services have pocketed over $400,000, and are expecting to make $600,000 annually from the recycling scheme.
However, a piece of legislation will now see council take 50 per cent of profits.
Challenge CEO Barry Murphy is expecting to see TRC hand its portion back, once final plans and approvals are in place for the organisation to launch a Buyback Centre and youth program, similar to Armidale’s Backtrack Youth Works.
The Environmental Protection Agency has legislated that all recycling ventures involved in the CDS must have a sharing arrangement in place with relevant councils by December 1, with TRC proposing an interim arrangement at Tuesday night’s ordinary council meeting.
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“The interim agreement will end in March 2019. By that time we will have progressed significantly with the buyback centre and program and can put a permanent agreement in place,” Mr Murphy said.
“For that to happen council will have to put that profit back into the recycling services, and they want to see that too because it is a win-win.
“For example, that money can be used on a service that would enable us to reclaim old mattresses.
“That gives more jobs and opportunities to Challenge, and there is less waste going into council’s tip.”
The program aims to take in youth at risk, and make them job ready or prepared for further education by using the buyback centre to teach them trade skills.
It will also hopefully keep them out of the prison system.
Challenge is currently waiting for a Memorandum of Understanding from council that will ensure it is the preferred recycler into the future before the program and centre are officially launched.
“There is not going to be huge profits,” Mr Murphy said.
“But if we can keep a kid out of prison that saves the community a couple of hundred thousand dollars a year.”
Based on data collected from the first four months of the CDS, Challenge estimated potential profits could have been as high as $1 million per annum, although industry studies suggest a drop of 40 per cent can be expected.
Challenge are also in the process of signing similar profit sharing agreements with three councils based on its recycling centre in Narrabri.
