Towns just outside Orange set to benefit from new bulk Return and Earn facility

At the grand opening of the Wangarang facility which allows recyclers to process thousands of bottles or cans in minutes, it was revealed that plans were in the works to expand the service to towns such as Molong, Eugowra, Millthorpe and Cudal.

CEO of Wangarang Industries, Kevin McGuire said a "hub and spoke" trial could be up and running by the end of 2024 for communities within an hour's drive of Orange.

He provided and example of how the service would operate.

The CEO said a vehicle would drive out to Molong on a Monday morning for four hours, where community members could bring along their cans and bottles, instead of driving to Orange themselves.

"We'll collect their containers, bring them back (to Wangarang), process them and jam the money into their bank accounts for them," Mr McGuire said.

"I liken it to the fish man. You know the fish man is in town on Tuesday afternoon at the IGA, so if you want to buy your fish, you go and buy your fish then and there."

Mr McGuire noted that if the trial showed there wasn't demand for the service in a particular town, it would not operate.

"Like the local bank, if it doesn't get used you're going to lose it," he added.

"It's not about money, but we have to pay our bills."

One group that took full advantage of the new Wangarang centre during its grand opening was the Rotary Club of Cowra.

Three years ago, two Rotarians would spend hours inserting bottles and cans into Cowra's reverse vending machine.

The group then started driving nearly 1.5 hours each way to Bathurst's bulk facility to get more bang for their buck.

That centre then temporarily closed, so the team decided to give Wangarang a chance.

Ian Docker from the club said they were able to unload roughly 11,000 cans and bottles at the Forest Road site in just 20 minutes.

This meant on a normal day where they get rolling at 7am, they'd be back home before lunch, compared to the "all day effort" needed prior.

"It's been absolutely fantastic. We're blown away," he said.

"It's hard for the guys to get a full day off work to come and do this. But if they could get half a day off, it'll be a game changer for us."