Wagga has 60 million bottles and cans recycled by Return and Earn between 2017 and 2020

To mark the third birthday of the recycling incentive scheme, its coordinators have added up every item deposited in reverse vending machines and depots across NSW councils between December 1, 2017 and November 30, 2020.

Within Wagga City Council, more than 30.2 million aluminium cans were deposited for a total weight of just under 400 tonnes.

Glass items were the next most common, with just over 16.5 million items handed in, but it did top the scales at more than 3200 tonnes.

PET containers took third place with just over 11.1 million items handed in for a total weight of 252 tonnes, followed by HDPE plastic milk bottles with 871,000 items weight a total of 24.7 tonnes.

A spokesperson for Wagga City Council was unavailable for comment.

Brucedale environmental volunteer Gordon Murray said he was pleasantly surprised by Wagga's enthusiasm for the scheme.

"Most of [the items] would have gone to the tip otherwise, so it's very impressive," he said.

"I think it's done a bit to clean up roadsides because the items are worth somebody picking them up and it gets all of us thinking more about recycling when they put a value on it.

"When Return and Earn first came in I thought 'how many people would bother?' I have been proved wrong on that. Obviously a large number of people do it."

Wagga ranked 28th out of 124 NSW councils for the highest number of items recycled, sitting between Tamworth and Port Macquarie-Hastings on the leaderboard.

Wagga was also significantly ahead of many Sydney suburbs, but Albury still ranked higher with 74.6 million items returned.

The number of items returned in Wagga indicated that consumers and charities could have netted up to $5.9 million in rebates although not every item listed in the report would have been eligible for a 10-cent deposit.

Jason Aveyard, from Wagga, who attended the Gurwood Street Woolworths Return and Earn machine on Thursday with a trolley full of bottles and cans to deposit, said the city's figure of 59 million items over three years was a "very big number".

"I take part in Return and Earn because it keeps the town nice and tidy and I enjoy doing it," he said.

Lea, from Wagga, who asked not to use her last name, said she used Return and Earn to provide "a bit of pocket money for the kids".

"It also helps when our recycling bins are getting full as they're only emptied once every two weeks," she said.

"There should be more Return and Earn stations around Wagga."

Exchange for Change chief executive Danielle Smalley, whose organisation coordinates Return and Earn, praised NSW councils for their contribution to the success of the scheme. "Local councils all over NSW have helped shift attitudes to litter and recycling at a grassroots level," Ms Smalley said.