www.insidewaste.com.au
ISSUE 104 | OCT/NOV 2021
INSIDE 24 Right to Repair 34 Metal Recycling 38 Waste Innovation
Is 80 per cent diversion possible?
Show us the money for the investment would be the aforementioned landfill levies. After all, many understood that that was one of the main reasons the levies were introduced for in the first place. Currently, it seems that the vast majority is going to the NSW government’s consolidated funds. According to a 2020 NSW Auditor General’s report, the state government has collected almost $4 billion in waste levies in the previous five years. Of the $751 million raised in 2018-19, two thirds of the monies went to areas outside the waste industry according to the report. If the government does want investment in the sector, industry players told Inside Waste that not only is there an expectation that levy money will go towards said investment, it will give a signal to investors on where the government stands so they can make sound, informed investment decisions. “One of the things I would have expected from the document was a review of the landfill levy; to say where the levy is going over the
next five to 10 years so that people can make their investment decisions today,” MRA Consulting’s Mike Ritchie told Inside Waste. “I think that is a missed opportunity – the government is committed to doing it, but I would have liked to see it as part of the 20-year plan.” While Helen Sloan, the acting general manager from the Southern Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (SSROC) wasn’t as direct as Ritchie, she did give a hint as to where the organisation sits. “Clear, realistic targets are an important part of driving policy outcomes,” she said. “However, as we work with the NSW Government to co-design an implementation plan, questions remain about the limited scale of available funding to assist councils towards achieving these targets.” Meanwhile, Gayle Sloan from WMRR said the organisation is overall happy with the plan, but again, noted that the question of funding is integral to making sure it happens. (Continued on page 20)
PP: 100024538
ISSN 1837-5618
IN June, the NSW government released its long-awaited waste strategy, NSW Waste and Sustainable Materials Strategy 2041. The reaction of many players in the industry was one of relief. They finally had something tangible to look to in terms of what the NSW government was looking to achieve over the next 20 years. Like a lot of bureaucratic policies, the devil was in the detail, which to some, was missing. Yet, despite some misgivings, there were promising signs when it came to plastics, FOGO and C&D. What seemed to be a common theme after perusing the document among those polled by Inside Waste was, ‘who’s paying?’, or more accurately, ‘can we have our landfill levy money back, please? We need to invest in infrastructure’. The strategy acknowledges that there is a lack of bricks and mortar and that it needs to be built if the 2041 targets are to be met, and you can’t have infrastructure without the capital investment. An ideal starting point for the money needed
ONE of the biggest contributors to landfill waste is FOGO – specifically food organics. Some of the figures surrounding food waste in Australia make for sober reading. As well as the much touted seven million-plus tonnes that are thrown away every year, and how it produces about five per cent of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions, there is also the fact that almost 50 per cent of landfill waste is FOGO. Even more startling, according to the Australian Federal Government’s website environment.gov.au, 25 per cent of water used in agriculture to grow food is wasted. Tossing a burger in the bin, in terms of water used to create the ingredients, is about the same as having a shower for 90 minutes. Currently, Australia produces enough food to feed 75 million people. With a population of just over 25 million that is more than enough to feed the country, with plenty to export. But the country could still do a lot better on both the commercial and household FOGO front, according to some within the industry. The federal government’s target of 80 per cent waste diversion from landfill by 2030 is doable according to most, with FOGO playing a big part in making sure that target it reached. However, wishing the targets to be met, and meeting them, are not the same. Almost everybody spoken to for this article is in agreement, in principle, with the targets. (Continued on page 22)
Meet the XR - Low cost, high performance waste shredding and alternative fuel production. Visit a reference site | Book a trial | Request a free waste audit | info@focusenviro.com.au
