Unnecessary Container Deposit Scheme.

Dear Editor,



Independent Member for Nelson, Gerry Wood claims that Kate Carnell and the Australian Food and Grocery Council, are orchestrating some kind of con to mislead Territorians about the Government’s Cash for Containers scheme.


However, as an independent observer, I believe it is Gerry Wood and the NT Government that are either willingly, or through total head-in-the-sand ignorance doing the “conning”, and therefore misleading Territorians on this totally unnecessary scheme.


Firstly, all NT local governments (councils) already have an effective rubbish collection and recycling regime in place. All NT councils have two wheelie bins – one for waste, and the other for recyclables. I understand this works very well here in the NT – apparently about the best in Australia. So why the need to put deposits on every container sold in the NT?


Secondly, can Wood or Henderson actually dispute the figures provided by the Australian Food and Grocery Council? The examples of additional costs provided by the Australian Food and Grocery Council seem to me, in view of the massive additional expenditure required to collect, store and transport all these containers, to be, if anything, on the conservative side. Currently the majority of all recyclables are efficiently and cost-effectively, collected by the various council waste contractors from households, and similarly by waste contractors from commercial premises.


Again, I ask: why are Henderson and Wood advocating such unnecessary nonsense when it will achieve nothing other than push up prices? I know it was originally Wood’s idea as part of his backing of Henderson’s minority government. But Henderson has now (at least publicly) embraced it with gusto.


Does Henderson’s serial interventionism in so many aspects of our lives (and Martin’s before him) ever achieve anything of value for normal everyday Territorians? Certainly Not, in my view! These leaders (Henderson and Martin) seem to be under the complete influence of their army of advisors, most of whom would be unlikely to make it in the real world. Are these faceless, highly paid and unelected men and women (mostly from failed southern states) the kind of people we want running our once fiercely independent and free-thinking Territory?


Yours truly,


Dave Wane