Council's nappy and sanitary product rebate arrives after community calls

The City of Launceston trial - which began this week - has been designed to assist residents with the initial purchasing costs for the products.

Each Launceston municipality resident is eligible to apply for one rebate - a 50 per cent return on the purchase price - on either cloth nappies, up to $150, or reusable sanitary products up to $50.

The trial - which is being funded by an NRM North Economy Grant and the council - will operate until June 30 subject to the duration of the funding and is part of council's sustainability and waste reduction initiatives.

Figures suggest switching to cloth nappies diverts one third of a tonne of waste annually from landfill per child.

The average baby, from birth to toddler, will require 6,000 nappy changes.

Residents led a strong community advocacy push for a nappy rebate scheme in the middle of last year.

Speaking to The Examiner in July 2023, Launceston mother Jenna Ostersen advocated heavily for a cloth nappy rebate in the wake of the City of Hobart implementing two rounds of the program, once in 2021 and again in 2023.

"Councils have a duty to look after their council areas and the communities within, and this is one tangible way they could do that," Ms Ostersen told this paper at the time.

Council waste and environment officer Cassandra Jackson said reducing the amount of waste going into the city's landfill site would help extend the lifespan of the facility and reduce overall emissions.

"One of the main motivators for switching to reusable alternatives is the general reduction in waste generated," Ms Jackson said.

"Taking into account the variation in products and experiences, on average a single person would be capable of diverting over two-kilograms of waste annually by switching to reusable sanitary products.

"Importantly, the whole-of-life expense of reusable products versus disposal alternatives shows that reusable products can provide significant cost savings over time."

Launceston mayor Matthew Garwood said the pricing of those products could sometimes be a factor preventing people from making the switch to more environmentally-conscious choices.

"We hope that this rebate will help reduce waste, support the needs of our community, and help us move towards the goal of zero waste to landfill," Mayor Garwood said.

"This is an opportunity to further discuss not only financial benefits to households but also the positive impacts to the environment."

A full list of cloth nappy and reusable sanitary product parameters can be found at the Council website, where applications for the rebate can also be made through an online submission form.