9 hours ago
Noosa on a green mission as businesses and council voluntarily ban single-use coffee cups
The Queensland beachside town of Noosa has voted to phase out disposable coffee cups in the region despite the council lacking the power to enforce a ban.
Noosa Shire Council this week adopted a plan to encourage a voluntary, industry-led transition away from single-use cups and remove them from council headquarters.
A rubbish audit in 2023 found coffee cups accounted for about 20 per cent of litter items in bins at Noosa Main Beach.
Many of these cups are lined with plastic and cannot be recycled.
Councillor Amelia Lorentson brought the motion to Thursday's council meeting saying it was important for the council to lead by example to reduce landfill.
She said she was inspired to raise the issue following the recent Noosa Eat and Drink Festival.
"No-one had anything except reusable cups," she said.
The event was organised by businessman Ben Clarke whose Noosa cafe supports transitioning away from single-use, plastic coffee cups.
"He's leading the charge. It's voluntary and it's industry-led," Cr Lorenston said.
"We're just enabling these sorts of programs where the industry shows other cafe operators how to transition out of coffee cups."
The motion passed four votes to three and the council believed it to be the first such initiative in Queensland.
In December, the small town of Bermagui on the NSW South Coast adopted a similar approach.
The majority of cafes there have joined forces to eliminate disposable coffee cups from their businesses.
Customers who do not have their own vessels pay a $3 deposit for a recycled reusable cup.
That deposit is refundable at any of the other participating cafes.
Some Noosa councillors questioned the relevance of trying to stop cafes from using disposable cups when the council lacked the authority to force businesses to adopt the measure.
Councillor Tom Wegener said that the motion did not have the "meat and bones" to make a difference.
Cr Lorenston respectfully disagreed.
"There are coffee shops that are already doing this," she said.
Cr Lorenston said the volume of plastic and litter at Noosa Beach following ex-tropical cyclone Alfred inspired the motion.
"The motion was about empowering and encouraging businesses," she said.
"The responsibility lies with all of us residents and also our visitors.
"I've got my little keep-cup coffee cup that sits in the car all the time."
Griffith University consumer behaviour expert Graeme Hughes said the success of the initiative would depend on its simplicity and the buy-in from local businesses.
"It does necessitate those cafes to support this," he said.
"If there's any friction in that process consumers are not going to be happy and find other solutions.
"If there was an early incentive of a 50 cent reduction in your morning coffee that's a win-win scenario."
Dr Hughes said the reusable cups were "quite trendy" a few years ago and the movement needed a "reinvigoration".
