Melville Primary School students rewarded for recycling using Envirobank in Fremantle

A DOWNPOUR was not enough to stop Melville Primary School students trying out the latest in recycling technology in Fremantle this morning.

The Envirobank Reverse Vending Machine, which was placed on the Esplanade Reserve for maximum impact, is the first of its kind in WA, giving out reward vouchers to use at local businesses for those who feed aluminium cans or plastic bottles into it.

City of Fremantle mayor Brad Pettitt said he hoped it would encourage visitors to recycle their waste, with the added benefit of promoting local businesses and keeping the streets clean.

Karen Vaughan from Envirobank Australia said the machine had the smarts to separate aluminium from plastic and reject anything that was not recyclable.

With a capacity of up to 2000 crushed bottles and aluminium cans, the program will be trialled in Fremantle until 2018.