Australians are avid recyclers but most of the plastic waste we produce is still ending up in landfill or vast hidden stockpiles. The latest recycling scheme to fall over is an ambitious effort backed by supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths to recycle soft plastic bags.

Now the federal government has revealed to 730 it will pledge to recycle all of the nation’s plastic waste by 2040. Elias Clure reports.