Silverwater Depot Wins Local Business Award

Silverwater Return and Earn, operated by Clean Vibes, has been named "Outstanding New Business" at the 2026 Parramatta Local Business Awards. The team was recognised at the ceremony this week, capping off a milestone that already had plenty to celebrate, aligning with the depot's 2nd birthday.

Silverwater Return and Earn only opened our doors in 2024, so this recognition means a great deal. It's a direct reflection of our team's passion, dedication and commitment, day in and day out.

In the last year alone, the depot processed 19 million drink containers, returning almost $2 million back into the pockets of families and businesses in our community, at 10c per eligible container. Over the full two years, that number climbs to 31 million containers recycled - each one given a second life.

• 175 million litres of water saved – 72.67 Olympic pools
• 39,071 gigajoules of energy saved – 423 years of household energy use
• 4.98 million kg of CO₂ prevented – like taking ~2,253 cars off the road for a year
• $3.1 million refunded to the community

Growing With Our Community

Since day one, we've believed in helping the community beyond just recycling drink containers. We partner with recycling companies to provide solutions for end-of-life batteries, e-waste, Nespresso pods and cardboard because doing the right thing shouldn't stop at bottles and cans.

We've also grown alongside the businesses around us, partnering with venues and stadiums across Sydney Olympic Park, to support container collection and recycling at scale.

And behind the scenes, we've kept investing - upgrading machinery like conveyor belts and processing equipment, and streamlining the experience from the moment a customer drives in. We're always looking for ways to be better at what we do.

Doubling the Positive Impact

Some of our proudest moments over the last two years have come through our charity partnerships. For Jeans for Genes, we matched donations for a month, collecting 23,000 containers from generous customers and matching that with a $4,600 donation towards finding cures for sick kids.

We've also just launched a new partnership with Sydney Dogs and Cats Home, giving customers the chance to donate their container refunds towards animals in need. We're always looking for new opportunities to do good, and this is one we're especially excited about.

Service That Keeps Customers Coming Back

None of this means much without the people who show up. Our 4.9-star Google rating reflects a team that genuinely cares about getting it right, every visit.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "The Silverwater Return and Earn is the easiest way to recycle bottles and cans. There are plenty of bays to park inside and the staff do everything else for you. You can also drop off used batteries as well!"

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "I'm glad for this business/centre to be available as it's very convenient to bring in any light/odd-sized containers that the self-service return and earn can't take through their machine. These guys and their facilities are able to sort and count regardless of size/shape."

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Always greeted with a smile. Thank you for making returning our containers so easy"

As we keep growing, our team is committed to finding new ways to streamline services so we can maintain our quick turnaround without slack on quality.

Thank you

We wanted to thank our customers, clients and the everyday businesses who've supported us along the way, thank you for trusting us to help make our community a little greener.

Environmental responsibility matters more than ever, and the 10c return is a great incentive on top of doing the right thing. If you haven't visited us yet, come drop off your cans and bottles - our team is always happy to help. And if you're a business generating containers at scale, let's talk about a partnership - we can arrange collection directly from you.

📍 Silverwater Return and Earn Depot: 196 Silver St, Silverwater, NSW 2128

📍 Mascot Return and Earn Depot: 285 King St, Mascot NSW 2020

🕐 Open 7 days a week. Closed public holidays.