JAIME-LEE WOODS
Gold Coast families can help reduce 900 tonnes of waste by disposing their used child car seats at the Reedy Creek Community Waste and Recycling Centre.
With over 200,000 seats being sent to landfill every year, environmental organisation, Equilibrium is trialing the collection service across Australia.
The organisation’s director, Damien Wigley is confident that this number can be easily reduced.
“75% of a child car safety seat contains recyclable plastic and metals components which can be easily recycled,” Mr Wigley said.
“The aim of the trial is to either manually dismantle or shred the whole seats to recover the plastic and metal components for recycling.”
With public support for the program increasing, Equilibrium have extended the trial period until the end of September.
Mr Wigley said that once the trial is complete they will present their findings to the government and manufacturers to see if the project can be rolled out nationally.
“We will also be surveying the community to see if there is a willingness to pay and what the cost might be to enable a Product Stewardship program.”
Mother of one from Burleigh, Danielle Sparkes said she would be willing to pay for the service.
“I had no idea how much impact these seats had on the environment, so I would definitely be willing to pay a small fee to reduce my carbon footprint,” Ms Sparkes said.
Mr Wigley stated the disposal program will also help to ensure that worn out seats will not be re-used.
“Age, extreme car temperatures, previous involvement in a crash and the standard wear of regularly used latches, straps and buckles can dramatically affect the ability of car seats to protect children in the event of a serious car accident,” Mr Wigley said.
“Disposing of a child car safety seat once it reaches its fixed life span gives parents peace of mind that their child will be protected in the event of a crash.”