The former Assistant Minister for Waste Reduction has stepped into the interim CEO role at Container Exchange (COEX) with a clear mandate: take a scheme that has returned $1.1 billion to Queenslanders and finally break through its “two-thirds” recycled barrier.
Since launching in 2018, COEX scheme Containers for Change has recovered over 11 billion containers.
Yet, the scheme has hit a “glass ceiling” at a 66 percent recovery rate. According to Evans, the problem is no longer awareness, but convenience – particularly in dense urban areas.
In parts of North Brisbane, recovery rates are reported to linger near 54 percent – well below the 85 percent legislated target.
“All the signs are that in built-up suburban and inner-urban areas, people are not as willing to travel great distances,” Evans said.
To fix the urban deficit, Evans aims to leverage his background as former chief executive of the National Retail Association.
His strategy is to treat recyclers as “customers” rather than “users” and to shift the focus from large industrial sites to what he dubs a “diverse approach” of shop-fronts and high-tech reverse vending machines.
“Retailers put the customer convenience factor at the top of everything they do,” Evans said.
“If we keep that close to our hearts, I’m confident we can reclaim that inner-city market.
“The scope for growth is in the out-of-home areas – sports stadiums, shopping centres, and public parks.”
That approach is now being trialled in parts of the city. At New Farm State School, reverse vending machines have been installed to take containers consumed away from home, while smaller machines have also appeared around Milton to target commuters and foot traffic rather than car-based depot users.
According to the parliamentary inquiry, the scheme has generated $2.5 billion in revenue, yet less than 40 percent of that value has found its way back into the pockets of Queenslanders.
Evans’ push for accessibility is arguably an effort to ensure those who fund the scheme through higher beverage prices can actually reclaim their money.
Regarding the recent parliamentary inquiry into COEX’s governance, Evans is straightforward.
He views the 21 recommendations not as a critique, but as an “improvement roadmap” to rebuild trust.
“I think the interim period involves demonstrating that the lessons have been learned, but also making sure that we don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater,” he said.
For Evans, his new role is a logical bookend to his political career.
“I helped draft the laws that stopped Australia sending its rubbish overseas,” he said. “Now, we have to upgrade our capacity to recycle here at home.”
