this post was submitted on 30 Mar 2025
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In short:

Damian Gordon has bought a house using savings earned from recycling bottles and cans.

Each eligible bottle or can recycled at a Return and Earn depository results in a 10-cent refund.

What's next?

Mr Gordon says he will continue to return cans and bottles to help pay off his mortgage

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[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 124 points 3 days ago (3 children)

half a million cans over seven years

If the cans are only $.10/ea, then 450k only netted him $45k. It took him seven years to earn just enough to pay for the deposit, not even the house.

Real Boring Dystopia Shit

[–] FenderStratocaster@lemmy.world 33 points 3 days ago (3 children)

The guy paid for a down payment on a house with a hobby. That's cool. I'm jealous.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 15 points 2 days ago (1 children)

He paid for a down payment with seven years of manual labor earning less than a living wage.

[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago (1 children)

I've got a truck bed and more worth of cans out back. Maybe worked 4 hours over two years? Almost all of the effort was crushing them by hand since I kept breaking the shitty crushers and been too lazy to make one. And that's not counting the cans I pick out of the woods, usually toss them with the other garbage I get.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Maybe worked 4 hours over two years?

And you've got 450k cans in the back of your pickup?

Sure, dude.

[–] can@sh.itjust.works 2 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

I think you misunderstand them.

I've got a truck bed and more worth of cans out back.

More than just the truckload, not more than OP.

How about you time yourself gathering and crushing a truckload of cans and then come back to the conversation prepared to address the main point

[–] DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social 7 points 3 days ago (1 children)

You can absolutely make $4ph on your hobby, I believe in you.

I pay for my hobbies. A lot of money.

[–] NeilBru@lemmy.world 1 points 2 days ago

I'm ~~jealous~~ envious.

[–] boonhet@lemm.ee 41 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

I mean he also has a full time job, he made 45k in 7 years off his side hustle.

I do agree that it should be easier to afford a home. Also bottle deposits need to rise. They've been stagnant for over a decade where I live. It's like a 2-in-1 city cleaning program and beer money program for bums.

[–] pineapplelover@lemm.ee 10 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Where tf did he find all those cans? There are people in my community digging through trash for some cans and bottles and don't find as many

[–] can@sh.itjust.works 13 points 2 days ago

While he holds down a permanent job during the week, Mr Gordon also volunteers at events like music festivals, where he collects thousands of cans and bottles at a time.

That's a lot more than you can fit in a shopping cart.

[–] boonhet@lemm.ee 2 points 2 days ago

I think it's country dependent. Wealthier countries with low deposit have more thrown away.

[–] SchmidtGenetics@lemmy.world 18 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (4 children)

You’re out in nature while helping to clean up the environment and also making a little income.

Better than just working “for the man” don’t you think? There’s also far worse you can do with your spare time.

[–] Trex202@lemmy.world 9 points 3 days ago (2 children)

I'm so glad these corporations are giving us single use cans for the opportunity to connect with nature and earn a little income.

[–] MrFinnbean@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Of all the things you can be angry to corporations, bottle and can recycling is the wrong one.

[–] Trex202@lemmy.world -1 points 2 days ago (2 children)

No it's not. It shouldn't be up to the consumer to recycle their products. They are shifting blame onto the people

[–] MrFinnbean@lemmy.world 6 points 2 days ago

As a person who lives in country where bottle recycling works i disagree. Also it should not be the corporations who makes the rules, but the goverment.

Every store needs to accept every bottle and can and the system needs to be uniform between all the companies. Last year from all the sold bottles and cans 97% were returned to bottle recycler system, not because corporations shifted their responcibility to consumers, but because the goverment has ordered the companies to make recycling efficient, easy and worthwhile for the consumer.

[–] Fredthefishlord@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

The corporation cannot walk up to you and handhold you into recycling it. That is absolutely an individual responsibility.

You’re out in nature while helping to clean up

You're out in nature... IN AUSTRALIA! He's risking his life being out in nature picking up garbage.

[–] fyzzlefry@retrolemmy.com 2 points 3 days ago

Most of the time they take the cans and bottles out of people's recycling bin

[–] lurch@sh.itjust.works 0 points 3 days ago

don't make this sound too good, so ppl flinging bottles into nature don't feel like benefactors 😆