Lismore bin baskets put cash in pockets

Key points

• Lismore City Council has attached 20 Return and Earn baskets to public bins across Lismore and Nimbin, so residents can collect containers to claim refunds. The baskets sit on bins in the Lismore CBD, local parks and sporting fields.
• The council says a review found about $670,000 in container refunds was being lost to waste. Exchange for Change, which coordinates the scheme, funds the baskets.
• The baskets are a trial, and the council plans more across the CBD and villages in 2027 if it succeeds. Residents are asked to keep coffee cups and takeaway packaging out of the baskets.