As a way to reduce waste and raise money for charity, Seqwater water supply operators based at Gold Coast have been selling their used Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBCs) with proceeds going to support mental health charity, Beyond Blue.

Seqwater Southern Region Operations Manager Joe Meissner said IBCs had a storage capacity of 1000 litres and were typically used to store coagulant products for water treatment.

“Once the containers were emptied, we used to spend hundreds of dollars a year to dispose of them until we realised there was good money in auctioning off these IBCs,” Mr Meissner said.

“We now clean out and stockpile these used containers and sell them in bulk via a public auction house twice a year.

“Through doing this, we raise about $2000 a year, with all proceeds going to support Beyond Blue. Since the initiative begun we’ve been able to donate more than $6000.”

Mr Meissner said Seqwater’s maintenance electricians and mechanical teams had also found ways to turn trash into cash for charity.

“Our electricians are always replacing batteries at our operational sites for uninterruptible power supply units, which provide backup power when an outage happens, and also from our back-up power generators.

“Instead of throwing the used batteries away, we’re storing them along with the scrap steel our mechanical team collects and trading it all in to raise even more funds to support Beyond Blue.

“This has also proven to be a lucrative initiative, providing us thousands of dollars to further assist Beyond Blue as well as helping the environment by reducing landfill.

Beyond Blue Lead Clinical Adviser Dr Grant Blashki said the support of Seqwater was making a difference in people’s lives.

“Fundraising campaigns like this play a vital role, funding the Beyond Blue Support Service to support the mental health needs of the community,” Dr Blashki said.

“The free service is staffed by skilled mental health professionals who provide counselling, advice and referrals over the phone, via webchat or email.

“These funds help provide a beacon of hope, a source of resilience and a pathway to recovery.”