Queensland Environment Minister Leeanne Enoch says there's a "possibility" that wine bottles will be added to its container deposit scheme.
In a question on notice tabled in the Queensland Parliament, independent Noosa MP Sandy Bolton asked when containers, such as wine, milk and spirit bottles, might be included in the scheme.
Enoch noted that the government was awaiting the results of the South Australian government's review of its scheme before making a decision.
"One of the areas of their review is the range of containers that are included under the scheme," Enoch said.
"This review is being watched closely by other states and its outcomes will contribute to national discussions on the issue.
"The Queensland government is actively participating in these discussions."
Queensland's container refund scheme, which began in November 2018, has resulted in more than 523 million containers being returned to more than 275 container refund points, resulting in more than $52 million in refunds for customers.
However, LNP Environment spokesman David Crisafulli told The Brisbane Times: "I'm not convinced that it's operating at efficiently as it should at the moment.
"There are large areas that don't have a place where people can drop their containers off, there's no consistency across the hours of operating and the way the scheme and the way individual sites operate.
"I want to get those things sorted immediately."
Push to add wine bottles in SA
Local councils in South Australia are pushing for wine bottles to join the State’s container deposit scheme.
Councillors and mayors supported a proposal to investigate a 10c refund on wine bottles at a recent Local Government Association’s ordinary general meeting.
Removing wine bottles from household bins would shift the cost of recycling from councils to private entities, which are funded under the scheme.
According to a report by LGA senior policy officer Emily Heywood Smith, glass was responsible for a “significant proportion” of the cost of recycling to councils.
Glass shards found in recycling bins also “cause a number of problems for councils through the recycling process”.
Currently, wine bottles are not included in the scheme because it was established to prevent littering and wine bottles were not considered “takeaway products” that contributed to the rubbish problem.
Winemakers fight changes to SA container deposit scheme
Australian Grape & Wine has opposed moves to include wine bottles in South Australia’s Container Deposit Scheme.
According to AGW, it could cost South Australian wine businesses around $5 million per year and jeopardise the financial sustainability of the wine sector.
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