April 1 will mark four months since the container deposit scheme started in NSW, allowing people to claim a 10-cent rebate on eligible drink containers such as cans and bottles.

To fund the scheme, the price of containers increased by approximately 15 cents, and those unable to access a return point, such as Mudgee residents, have been left out of pocket.

“I’m bitterly disappointed in the rollout of the container deposit scheme. I’ve made that clear to the Premier and [Environment] Minister [Gabrielle] Upton,” Mr Grant said.

“The scheme itself is being embraced by the community, it’s just the way it has been rolled out certainly could have been better.

“My office worked very hard to get my local area prioritised and we’ve had some success but Mudgee has been one problem.”

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Mr Grant said one site at Byron Place near Woolworths was initially identified for a reverse vending machine by network operator TOMRA Cleanaway, but would have eaten into the number of car parks available.

“It would have resulted in the loss of six to eight car parks, which are priceless in Mudgee, especially on weekends,” he said.

“For the machine they are trying to find a suitable location but also to do the bulk collection or the over-the-counter options. They are being looked at and we are pushing hard to get that result.”

Mr Grant said beverage suppliers from the area including Bevco and the Mudgee Brewing Company also had every right to be annoyed by the way they had been impacted by the scheme.

Suppliers have said they were forced to absorb the upfront costs of Return and Earn, until money from retailers came through.

“The second problem is the ridiculous and unjustified cost that has been put on my producers in Mudgee,” Mr Grant said.

“Bevco has sung loud and long in relation to the financial impacts, as has the Mudgee Brewing Company, and they are right to be upset, as I am upset, and I’m trying to get something rectified for them.

“The government has put in place a short-term loan support scheme for them but that’s not suitable for those businesses, the way they are geared.

“Nor should they need to be carrying debt as a result of a government decision so I’m working closely with the Deputy Premier on a package to take that financial impost away from them.

“I’m on their side 100 per cent.”