The milestone drum was delivered to Mitiamo Football and Netball Club last month, signifying 24 million drums collected by the drumMUSTER program.
“drumMUSTER provides our club with a wonderful opportunity to fundraise from outside of our community,” said committee member and volunteer Geoff Thomas.
“The program allows us to raise our club’s social profile and provides a very valuable service by safely removing unsightly containers from farms and recycling them into usable products,” he said.
The Mitiamo Club operates four collection sites in Dingee, Mitiamo, Prairie and Yarrawalla where drums are received, inspected and held prior to the club’s annual collection in August.
“Most farmers are delighted to be rid of their drums and are surprised and horrified at how much chemical they have used during the year and the associated costs. drumMUSTER is a win for the community and the environment,” said Mr Thomas.
Now in its 125th year of operation, the club has collected over 7000 drums. This figure contributes to an astounding 24 million drums collected in Australia since the drumMUSTER program first began in 1999.
drumMUSTER Regional Consultant John Knight congratulates the club on their achievement.
“The community group concept is working well in Victoria and the Mitiamo Club is testament to what local communities can achieve by participating in the program,” he said.
The new milestone comes less than two years after drumMUSTER received the 20 millionth drum in Southern NSW.
National Program Manager Allan McGann said, “All chemical users should be proud of the achievement which has seen 29,000 tonnes of plastic waste avoided from landfill and recycled into new products like plastic cable covers, wheelie bins, road signs and bollards.”
“The Mitiamo Club is one of over 100 community groups that raise funds to support their activities and local communities,” he added.
In Victoria alone, there are 25 drumMUSTER community groups who have collected over 426,000 drums and raised $111,000 between them.
drumMUSTER and Mitiamo Football and Netball Club would like to thank the club’s volunteers – Ian, Ian, David, Henry, Andy, Dave, Col and Geoff – for their time, effort and commitment to ensuring the success of the program.
There are over 780 collection sites operating around Australia for chemical users to dispose of their eligible agvet containers. For further information about drumMUSTER, or to locate your nearest branch, call 1800 008 707.
