Esperance Shire Council knows from experience that strong community support and involvement can significantly increase farmer participation in the drumMUSTER program while raising much needed funds.
What was once a small, centralised program run exclusively by the Council, drumMUSTER now has the support of the entire region, including resellers such as Esperance Rural Supplies and six local communities comprising Cascade, Scaddan, Grass Patch, Salmon Gums, Condingup and Neridup.
drumMUSTER Regional Consultant Graeme Passmore said, “By working with community groups, farmers can see the direct benefits of their actions.”
The Council first partnered with drumMUSTER in 2000, and with the assistance of their community groups, has collected over 200,000 empty agvet chemical containers in total – a fantastic achievement.
Over the past four years, deliveries in the Esperance Shire have increased from 6,000 to nearly 16,000 drums each year. This is during a period when the estimated number of drums being sold by resellers has halved.
Farmer deliveries also increased from 29 to 120 and community groups working with drumMUSTER in Esperance received close to $4,000 to support their activities in 2014.
“These dollars are vital for small communities,” said drumMUSTER National Program Manager Allan McGann. “I encourage all farmers to contact their local community group or council to dispose of their empty containers.”
drumMUSTER is a fantastic disposal option for users across the state. Since the start of the program in Western Australia, chemical users have returned over 4.1 million containers. Nationally, the total has surpassed 26.5 million drums.
Please call Wylie Bay Waste Management Facility on (08) 9071 7594 to make a drumMUSTER delivery appointment.
All containers presented at Shire and community collection sites must have lids off and be triple rinsed so as to be free of any chemical residue.
To learn more about the drumMUSTER program, visit www.drummuster.com.au or call Mr Passmore on 0429 933 307.
