Waste Management Review December 2020

DECEMBER 2020

Australia’s future success WRIQ’s Mark Smith on driving solutions for a sustainable future

FEATURES Federal Budget Collaboration at the weighbridge Recycling’s Silicon Valley Carbon neutral stewardship

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COVER STORY

12

AUSTRALIA’S FUTURE SUCCESS Newly appointed WRIQ CEO Mark Smith discusses the role of the workforce in driving solutions for a shared and sustainable future.

16

BREAKING DOWN THE BUDGET Waste Management Review speaks with Assistant Waste Reduction and Environmental Management Minister Trevor Evans about what the Federal Budget means for waste.

“IT’S GREAT TO SEE THE FOCUS AND ATTENTION OUR SECTOR IS RECEIVING FROM GOVERNMENTS NATIONALLY. BUT IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THIS INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT NEEDS TO BE COUPLED WITH ADDITIONAL MARKET INTERVENTIONS.” - Mark Smith, WRIQ CEO.

In this issue

Features

21 FOUNDATIONAL DOCUMENTS

28 BIOCONVERSION PROCESS

SMARTER 22 AALTERNATIVE

TO 30 FOGO FERTILISER

The AORA Board sees COVID-19 as an opportunity to collaborate and reposition, writes Executive Officer Peter Olah.

North-West Recycling’s David Murphy explains that the future of waste management lies in improved resource recovery and reuse of organic material.

NATURAL 24 MIMICKING DIGESTION Since installing Veolia Australia and New Zealand’s onsite digester solution, Harris Farms has diverted over 100 tonnes of food waste from landfill and counting.

Syntek Environmental’s Ultraverte process can convert all kinds of waste into low volume, value added products.

Universal Greening’s DOBAS process is transforming FOGO into quality biological fertiliser in just 10 days.

32 SILICON VALLEY

As Northern Ireland continues to be a major player in the materials handling market, WMR speaks with key stakeholders about the role equipment ingenuity can play in Australia’s circular economy transition.

36 WASTE DATA IN WA

Through the installation of Mandalay Technologies’ weighbridge system, WMRC is better positioned to deliver on its commitment to efficiently manage waste for Perth’s central western communities.

50 COLLABORATIVE COMPLIANCE

Negligent regulations need to be addressed to stop unscrupulous operators. Tyre Stewardship Australia CEO Lina Goodman explains.

Regulars

55 P RODUCT SHOWCASE 61 LAST WORD

www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 3

PUBLISHER

Christine Clancy christine.clancy@primecreative.com.au

MANAGING EDITOR

Melanie Stark melanie.stark@primecreative.com.au

EDITOR

From the Editor

Virtual connections

Holly Keys holly.keys@primecreative.com.au

JOURNALIST

Brittany Coles brittany.coles@primecreative.com.au

DESIGN PRODUCTION MANAGER Michelle Weston michelle.weston@primecreative.com.au

ART DIRECTOR

This time last year waste industry representatives and circular economy thinkers were gearing for the Australasian Waste and Recycling Expo (AWRE).

With plane tickets booked and agendas set, the sector was eagerly awaiting the opportunity to forge new connections and develop strategies for growth.

But, 2020 had other plans, with the COVID-19 pandemic forcing a restructuring of not just our sector but society as a whole. That said, AWRE 2020 forges ahead, albeit in a reimagined virtual setting.

Despite the setbacks of 2020, the waste and resource recovery industry is experiencing unparalleled investment and political engagement.

The Recycling and Waste Reduction Bill has passed in the house of representatives, the Product Stewardship Act is being reformed and the Recycling Modernisation Fund is set to generate $600 million in recycling infrastructure investment. Significant progress is also underway towards the delivery of the 2025 National Packaging Targets.

These changes will prove critical to sector expansion, as we begin moving from a reactive to proactive approach to COVID normal.

While this period of growth has dominated domestic discourse, it is also gaining international attention, notably in Northern Ireland.

To help foster Australia’s recycling transition, a group of nine Northern Irish waste and recycling equipment manufacturers have banded together to showcase their offerings at a specialised virtual AWRE stand.

When I interviewed these companies in October, a number of key themes stood out. Namely, that while once five steps behind its European counterparts, the Australian market is poised for expansion – with growing support fostering an environment where capital investment in static facilities is no longer perceived as a risk.

It’s in this environment that we once again reconvene at AWRE. With a jampacked exhibition program and presentations from over 20 industry experts, we have the opportunity to connect while staying apart, as we all navigate a changing world.

4 / WMR / December 2020

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DESIGN

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BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Chelsea Daniel-Young chelsea.daniel@primecreative.com.au p: +61 425 699 878

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COPYRIGHT

Waste Management Review is owned by Prime Creative Media and published by John Murphy.

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The Editor welcomes contributions but reserves the right to accept or reject any material. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information, Prime Creative Media will not accept responsibility for errors or omissions or for any consequences arising from reliance on information published. The opinions expressed in Waste Management Review are not necessarily the opinions of, or endorsed by the publisher unless otherwise stated.

resourceco.com.au TOMORROW’S SOLUTIONS. TODAY

News

EPA VIC releases West Gate Tunnel spoil landfill update EPA Victoria has approved an Environment Management Plan (EMP) for Cleanaway’s Ravenhall landfill, as part of its application to receive tunnel boring machine (TBM) spoil from the West Gate Tunnel project.

In its summary of Cleanaway’s EMP, the EPA states that Ravenhall landfill’s spoil containment cell will comprise a liner overlaid with additional protection and drainage layers, and a leachate collection system to avoid the potential for PFAS leaching into groundwater.

Initial testing on the project showed PFAS could be expected when tunnelling begins.

Under government regulations, the owner of a site bidding to receive TBM spoil must develop an EMP and comply with specific conditions, including constructing an appropriate containment system and managing spoil appropriately so risks are controlled.

“The health of the local community and the environment is our first priority and these EMPs will ensure they are protected,” EPA Regulatory Standards, Assessments and Permissioning Executive Director Tim Eaton said.

“Each of the EMPs has been rigorously reviewed and approved on the basis they meet strict conditions designed to protect human health and the environment.”

The West Gate Tunnel project is expected to generate three million tonnes of waste soils from tunnel alignment over an 18-month period.

According to the EPA, landfills in Victoria cannot absorb this additional

6 / WMR / December 2020

West Gate Tunnel spoil will not be subject to the Victorian Government’s landfill levy.

material without exhausting existing capacity in the market.

The tunnel soil will also be wet and require a large area to aid dewatering prior to deposit in a cell.

This space and infrastructure is not available at most landfills.

The EPA states that generic landfill designs will not be used for sites approved to take TBM soil.

“The designs are engineered, modelled and auditor approved based on everything that is known about PFAS, making them unique in Australia,” the EPA said.

New regulations under section 71 of the Environment Protection Act 1970

allow for the management and disposal of TBM spoil to protect human health and the environment.

“Sites approved under the regulations to receive this type of spoil are not areas engineered and licensed for landfilling of the various types of industrial and municipal waste, so spoil received and contained at these sites will not be subject to the landfill levy,” the EPA said.

“The sites will appropriately treat, manage, segregate and contain the material so that it may be reused in future if a suitable use can be established.”

The West Gate Tunnel Project is expected to be complete in 2023.

We are recruiting for tomorrow

To register your interest email memberservices@wriq.com.au

WRIQ

Learn. Grow. Lead.

News

ACOR paper outlines recycling market policy incentives An independent policy discussion paper has recommended a better targeting of annual waste levies and a new Plastic Reduction Offset Scheme, to improve Australia’s chance of meeting ambitious national recycling targets.

Earlier this year, the Australian Council of Recycling (ACOR) commissioned economics policy expert Peter Crone to develop a discussion paper on potential incentives to support recycling manufacturing in Australia.

While acknowledging recent policy strides, the paper reaffirms the challenge of meeting the National Waste Action Plan recycling targets.

“Market failures and negative externalities are particularly significant in the waste sector. There is a wellestablished range of policy instruments that can help address this, including through taxes, the imposition of fees and charges, direct subsidies and tradable offset schemes,” the paper reads.

“In an ideal world, prices for waste disposal, virgin material and

manufactured goods should reflect the full costs involved, including environmental and social externalities.”

ACOR CEO Pete Shmigel said new policy and unprecedented industry innovation and investment are starting to deliver more results-based recycling. But to get to the next level, he said Australia needs to be prepared for further reforms that address market constraints.

“A Plastics Reduction Offset Scheme where companies earn valuable certificates for using recycled content would increase demand for non-virgin plastic and make recovered material more cost-competitive over time,” Shmigel said.

“Unlike taxes that consumers ultimately bear, it is a positive and more affordable way to stimulate domestic manufacturing for an industry already generating 50,000 regional jobs.”

The paper also recommends a 50 per cent waste levy discount on residual waste materials that “burden the legitimate resource recovery activities of

The paper proposes a cross-funding arrangement whereby waste levies on residual waste materials are removed.

8 / WMR / December 2020

recycling companies.”

Earlier this year, Prime Minister Scott Morrison noted that only eight per cent of the $2.6 billion collected in waste levies in the last two years was being reinvested by state and territory governments in recycling infrastructure.

“On top of that, applying waste disposal levies on residual waste from legitimate recycling operations imposes high costs on domestic recyclers and remanufacturers, especially compared to overseas competitors who also have lower energy and labour costs, and restricts their own domestic infrastructure investment capacity,” Shmigel said.

“It’s truly unproductive to penalise and limit the capabilities of Australian companies that are being proactive and wishing to invest in recycling technologies, especially when there are public policy targets to meet and COAGdecided waste export bans to deal with.”

The paper proposes a cross-funding arrangement whereby waste levies on residual waste materials are removed, such as the Queensland precedent, in return for Federal-to-State funding of around $120 million, as well as commitments from industry to invest in new processing and remanufacturing technology and transparently accredit their operations.

“Recycling is clearly on the state and Federal Governments’ agendas, and that is very welcome. However, the current policy conditions need to be evolved so that Australians can truly take full responsibility for their waste,” Shmigel said.

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News

VIC Govt seeks feedback on proposed CDS model Victorians are being asked to provide feedback on the proposed model for the state’s container deposit scheme (CDS), which will be rolled out by 2023.

Victorian Waste Management Association CEO Peter Anderson said the waste recycling industry welcomes the opportunity to work closely with the Victorian Government to build this new recycling program.

“Drink cans and bottles make up almost half of all the litter in Victoria,” Anderson said.

“A CDS would significantly reduce this litter and help ensure a clean stream of recyclable materials can be re-used in new products instead of going to landfill or polluting the environment and harming our wildlife.”

Under the proposed model, there would be split responsibility for operation and governance.

Energy, Environment and Climate Change Minister Lily D’Ambrosio said this design maximises the number of bottles collected at the lowest cost for scheme delivery, as well as ensuring strong transparency and accountability.

“Cash for cans and bottles provides a great incentive to do the right thing and dispose of litter correctly for the sake of our environment and the benefit of all Victorians,” she said.

The CDS network would include a variety of collection points – such as automated reverse vending machines in public places, drive through depots, over the counter in shops and pop up collection points at events and festivals According to the Waste

10 / WMR / December 2020

The CDS design includes a separate scheme co-ordinator and network operator.

Management and Resource Recovery Association of Australia (WMRR), by proposing a split responsibility model, the Victorian government is able to manage the inherent conflict of interest associated with higher return rates leading to increased costs for beverage suppliers.

“Industry applauds the Victorian Government for proposing a scheme that is aligned with the government and community objective of delivering the highest quality, most accessible scheme,” WMRR CEO Gayle Sloan said.

Sloan added that industry acknowledges that there are multiple important players with distinct responsibilities in a best practice CDS, including the beverage industry, who can play a part in the governance arena and ensure equitable distribution of costs across the sector.

“However, to drive accessibility and community engagement, a strong scheme requires a recycling-driven approach to collection points, where that governance body is not conflicted by a primary objective of minimising costs to beverage suppliers,” she said.

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COVER STORY

Our future success is Australia’s future success NEWLY APPOINTED WASTE RECYCLING INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION QUEENSLAND CEO MARK SMITH DISCUSSES THE ROLE OF THE WORKFORCE AND UPCOMING LEADERS IN SHAPING SOLUTIONS FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE.

L

ong before the COVID-19 pandemic, government’s relationship with the waste, recycling and circular economy sector was shifting. Now more than ever, the waste and recycling industry is in the headlines due to a loss of public confidence, regulatory failures and a changing landscape regarding what

Mark Smith says the waste sector is set for a period of rapid growth.

12 / WMR / December 2020

needs to be done with waste and postconsumer materials.

This attention is not specific to Australia, but rather highlights an international shift, as the global economy reconciles growth, consumption and management of waste and post-consumer materials in a new geopolitical landscape.

“What I think a lot of policy makers don’t acknowledge enough is that we are all part of the waste and recycling system – every person and every business,” Waste Recycling Industry Association Queensland (WRIQ) CEO, Mark Smith says.

Australia’s interconnected waste and recycling system is managing millions of tonnes of material annually and is set for rapid expansion in the wake of landmark legislation by the Federal Government. In late October, the Recycling and Waste Reduction Bill 2020 was passed in the House of Representatives, signalling a paradigm shift that will boost recovery rates and support the creation of 10,000 new jobs over the next 10 years.

“Global markets for environmental goods and services remains essential to limiting our environmental impacts,” Smith says.

“It is important for Australia to understand our role in the global market and in our region, as we begin to consider implications of waste export bans and an increased discussion on sovereign capabilities to manage our own waste.”

The global waste and recycling sector is set to double in the next five to 10 years, which according to Smith, presents exciting opportunities for Australia’s industry and economy, including the tertiary sector.

“Australia is well placed to build a reputation of innovation and excellence that supports the waste and recycling needs of our region. These needs aren’t just the physical needs of waste management,” Smith explains.

Furthermore, he acknowledges the work of the Federal Government in taking bold steps to bring investments back into local markets through the incoming export ban – starting 1 July, as well as the millions of dollars being spent nationally to build the infrastructure needs of the sector.

“It’s great to see to the focus and attention our sector is receiving from governments nationally. But it is important to note that this infrastructure investment needs to

be coupled with additional market interventions,” Smith says.

These include buyback programs to support sustained demand and fostering an environment that supports business to develop new services and products.

Additionally, Smith highlights the current gap in focusing on policies that encourage the expansion of the sector and its dynamic workforce.

“We know that infrastructure and technology is important in creating a safe, sustainable and efficient sector. But the industry does a lot more than just run recycling machines,” he says.

“We employ scientists, engineers, trainers and drivers, communication and engagement teams, designers and manufactures. The list goes on.

“Businesses around the country aren’t just investing in trucks and sites that collect and process our waste, but also making substantial investments in people.”

The waste and resource recovery sector should be proud of the diverse make up of its employee base, Smith says, as well as the opportunities it provides to a wide range of Australians.

Many workplaces have seen major disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic, however, a constant has been the need to maintain waste and recycling services to the community, hospitals and other essential services.

According to Smith, the sector isn’t going anywhere and is set for rapid growth.

“We don’t stop. In fact, we are getting bigger. A simple review of government investment shows hundreds of millions of dollars being allocated to the sector,” he says.

“We need to remember that government only invest about five per cent into the sector, so billions more is invested by private operators. That money goes into sites, into machines,

WRIQ’s Future Leaders program will help participants move forward with a circular economy approach to waste and resource recovery.

into technology and into people.

“Recognising the future potential of our industry, I’m very excited to launch new programs that aim to engage future leaders of our industry and establish formal partnerships with Australia’s tertiary sector.”

NATIONAL INTERNSHIP PROGRAM The waste, recycling and circular economy industry supports a skilled and diverse workforce that can provide employment opportunities for Australians of all skill and ability levels.

Working with the tertiary sector, WRIQ is excited to launch a national internship program that provides waste, recycling and circular economy organisations, including suppliers and partners to the industry, with access to junior talent.

“Gone are the days when interns were in charge of the morning coffee run and menial jobs no one else wanted to do,” Smith says.

According to a recent NACE survey, only eight per cent of intern tasks

involved clerical or non-essential work responsibilities, with the other 92 per cent spent on higher-level tasks like data analysis, problem-solving and logistics.

“A quality intern can make real contributions to productivity now, helping your full-time staff avoid becoming overburdened by side projects, and freeing them up to accomplish more creative tasks or tasks that require high-level expertise,” Smith says.

He adds that interns bring more to the table than just an extra set of hands.

“Especially in today’s modular teams of five to 15 employees, new people bring novel perspectives that can break up the status quo, as well as specialised strengths and skill sets. Include interns in brainstorming sessions to maximise this benefit,” Smith says.

Additionally, he notes that interns can possess cutting-edge strategies, techniques and technology in their field.

“Accessing interns gives you direct access to recent developments. As

www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 13

COVER STORY

much as your interns will learn from you, you can also learn from them,” he says.

“Similarly, new interns are typically social media savvy. A recent survey from the Pew Research Centre showed that in the 18-24 demographic, around 75 per cent use Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. Not only that, they’re informed about current events, popular culture and the best social media trends.”

The program will also foster leadership skills in current employees, with mentorship providing great training for staff that will eventually occupy management positions.

“With interns on board, employees also have a lighter workload, more time for creative or advanced projects, and the opportunity to build confidence and leadership by guiding others,” Smith says.

“For the next three months, this program is open specially to WRIQ and its members, but will expanded nationally early in 2021.

“Anyone interested in the program should contact me directly at Mark.

Smith@wriq.com.au.”

RECRUITING FOR TOMORROW Working in parallel with WRIQ’s internship program is Future Leaders, the association’s unique mentorship program that provides hands on experience and tangible benefits for mentors, mentees and Queensland’s community and businesses.

The program is tailored around WRIQ’s key objectives: to promote thoughtful leadership, services and education to all its stakeholders, while advocating industry issues with the intent of achieving social, environmental and economically sustainable outcomes.

The 2021 program will provide participants with an increased

14 / WMR / December 2020

Mark Smith says the waste and resource recovery sector should be proud of the diverse make up of its employee base.

awareness of the key challenges impacting the future workforce, upskilling them to problem solve and create solutions for a shared future.

“We know our workforce along with the broader economy is changing.

We wanted to create a program that supports people to capitalise on the opportunities of this change and participation in our future leader program will enable that,” Smith says.

Through the program, aspiring professionals within Queensland (and remote access for those outside Queensland) who want to learn more about the future workforce and circular economy will be matched with experienced and thoughtful senior leaders.

The mentees will also undergo an extensive program of webinars, experiences, networking events and projects to build their credentials in this space.

“These experiences will also enhance their understanding of the attributes of the future leaders in this industry and embed human connection, mental health and broader wellbeing as core leadership values. You will not find another leadership program like this,” Smith says.

Furthermore, he explains that the Future Leaders program will help participants move forward with a circular economy approach to waste and resource recovery, build partnerships across community, business and government and rebuild business based on the triple bottom line.

It will also help participants development the skills needed to be resilient through the challenges our collective future holds.

For mentors, Smith says the program will provide the opportunity for personal reflection, growth and the sharpening of experienced interpersonal and communications skills.

“The Future Leaders mentor position provides a platform that will allow you to give back to your industry, our industry and Queensland, by sharing your skills and experience with the next generation of leaders, while gaining further insight and knowledge of the industry to expand on concurrent ideas,” Smith says.

“Mentors will have the opportunity to influence projects aligning to their own industry or business areas along a waste, recycling or circular economy theme and continue to grow your own professional network.”

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UP FRONT

What the budget means for waste TREVOR EVANS, ASSISTANT WASTE REDUCTION AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT MINISTER, SPEAKS WITH WMR’S BRITTANY COLES ABOUT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT’S AGENDA TO REMODEL WASTE MANAGEMENT.

“I

f you combine the budget funding along with recent initiatives, co-funding from states and industry, it totals to a billion-dollar investment into the transformation of our nation’s recycling and waste management capacity. Quite simply, that’s a game changer,” Trevor Evans, Assistant Waste Reduction and Environmental Management Minister, told Waste Management Review days following the release of the 202021 Federal Budget. Evans sat down in Canberra to discuss the Morrison Government’s investment in the waste and recycling sector with a cup of tea following a day in parliament.

“It’s taken hours to get the Recycling and Waste Reduction Bill 2020 and associated bills through the house of representatives today, but they are through. It took some effort to be passed but they’re done,” he says proudly.

Evans explains that these laws will become Australia’s first-ever national recycling act.

“These are significant bills which I’ve had the privilege of helping to develop alongside my friend and colleague the Minister for the Environment, Sussan Ley, and alongside the recycling sector, environmental groups, industry and experts,” he told the House of Representatives.

16 / WMR / December 2020

According to Evans, these bills will give Australia, for the first time, a comprehensive and national framework to improve recycling, reduce waste and achieve better resource recovery.

When prompted about how the 2020-21 Budget will deliver key outcomes in transforming the nation’s waste industry, Evans notes that for most of Australia’s history, Federal Governments were not especially involved in waste and recycling.

“I’m very confident those involved in the sector for a long time will welcome how involved the government is in waste and recycling, especially in terms of the rate and pace of change we’ve been shepherding,” he says.

“When Australians put their bins out on the kerb, what happens next has always been – and remains – a key responsibility of state governments, who, in turn, have often devolved it down to their local councils, “Yet there are many reasons why our government is the first Federal Government in Australia’s history to step so heavily into waste and recycling policy.

“Recent events have proven that there are, increasingly, national and international aspects to waste and recycling.”

THE FEDERAL BUDGET’S WASTE AGENDA Treasurer Josh Frydenberg revealed a $249 million boost for the waste and recycling industry as part of the 2020-21 Federal Budget announcement on Tuesday 6 October, in the hopes of stopping more than 600,000 tonnes of waste ending up in landfill and also creating industry jobs.

The highly anticipated Federal Budget document laid out the Morrison Government’s investment in the sector as part of Australia’s Economic Recovery Plan in response to COVID-19.

“This Budget builds on the investments we made in last year’s Budget, with an additional $1.8 billion in funding for the environment,” Frydenberg said in his Budget speech.

“Mr Speaker, by recycling more waste we can also create jobs.”

Frydenberg highlighted the a key sector priority is the government’s 250 million investment to “modernise our recycling infrastructure, stop more than 600,000 tonnes of waste ending up in landfill and by doing so, help to create a further 10,000 jobs”.

In the words of Prime Minister Scott Morrison: it’s our waste, it’s our responsibility.

Ahead of the Budget announcement, Morrison announced that $1.5 billion

in new funding would be invested over the next four years in the Modern Manufacturing Strategy.

Recycling and clean energy manufacturing is recognised as a National Manufacturing Priority “which reflects Australia’s established competitive advantages or emerging areas of priority,” Morrison said.

Frydenberg noted in his Budget speech that this plan is built on the JobMaker platform of enabling manufacturing businesses to be globally competitive through cheaper and more reliable energy. Waste and recycling businesses that hire unemployed young people will be given access to wage subsidies from the Federal Government.

The JobMaker hiring credit will be payable for up to twelve months and immediately available to employers who hire those on JobSeeker aged 1635. It will be paid at the rate of $200 per week for those aged under 30, and $100 per week for those aged between 30-35. Treasury estimates that this will support around 450,000 jobs for young people and contribute to filling the 10,000 jobs created within the waste and recycling industry over the next 10 years due to initiatives such as the new Recycling Modernisation Fund.

ACTIONING THE AGENDA The agenda is outlined loud and clear, but what is next in terms of actioning key priority areas?

“I need to make the point that the Budget announcements and investment capacity is only one of many policy areas that the government is trying to significantly move the dial,” Evans says.

He agrees that demand needs to be increased to ensure an ecosystem is built in Australia that lets potential supply and demand find each other, when there has been limited market potential for waste streams in previous years.

According to Evans, the Federal Government is focused on four main areas for building demand.

“In relation to recycling content, the first is to use our own Federal Government’s purchasing power. We’re

“This is particularly important in the regions of Australia as there is not always the scale of the value in some of the waste streams,” he says.

“We can move the dial through our leadership and through our

Trevor Evans says the Federal Government will continue to work closely with industry to build Australia’s onshore processing capacity.

working from the top down and the bottom up,” he says.

The other areas of demand include procurement policy and intensive projects that can be used to showcase the successful nature of recycled content within iconic national projects.

“We’re also encouraging states to take a similar approach through agreements and their own intensive projects that are going on. It’s linked with the turbocharged approach we’re taking with product stewardship,” he says.

However, Evans says the most significant step being taken to action demand is the establishment of new national guidelines and standards for the use of recycling content in roads and construction projects.

engagement with the community, with industry and with other levels of government.

“That’s why it was an important foundational step last year when the Environment Minister and I worked together with the states and territories and local government to agree on the National Waste Policy Action Plan.”

Evans says there is plenty to get on with before the end of the year to get the ball rolling with achieving ambitious targets.

“The sector can expect more announcements in relation to the Federal Government’s procurement policy, the new national waste report, successful recipients under the product stewardship investment fund and hopefully that will include some very

www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 17

UP FRONT

exciting news about new schemes to be established here in Australia,” Evans confirms.

However, he highlights the ‘talk of the town’ being the sector’s preparation ahead of the waste export ban that is on track to commence from January 1st, 2021.

“I’ve been engaging very closely with the sector and industry associations over the past year or so and I have to say, I’ve really relied on the expertise and relationships from so many passionate people,” Evans says.

He notes that it’s been a lengthy consultation period and is conscious that the Federal Government is stepping heavily into a space where it’s not traditionally involved.

“That’s why we shouldn’t assume all the answers lie here in Canberra and being able to engage effectively with industry helps us craft the very best targeted laws and helps us to avoid any unintended consequences.”

HONOURING COMMITMENT As Evans highlights, industry is passionate to boast transformation and advocate for sharper focus on key priority areas in the waste and recycling sector.

NWRIC CEO Rose Read says while there was no new funding for waste and recycling initiatives announced within the Federal Budget itself, there’s plenty of opportunity for the sector to take advantage of manufacturing priorities and tax change.

The announcement of a $52.8 million expansion of the Manufacturing Modernisation Fund will further focus small and medium manufacturing businesses on opportunities to innovate, adopt new technologies, invest in transformative manufacturing processes and both reskill and upskill the workforce.

“There is real potential for businesses

18 / WMR / December 2020

to grow – small to become medium and medium to become large, by looking for potential market opportunities through manufacturing. For example, investigating the different types of plastics that can be recycled into locally manufactured medical, defence and space products, food and beverage packaging and infrastructure projects – going further than just putting recycled content into roads,” Read says.

Prior to the budget announcement, the Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association of Australia (WMRR) had been working closely with all governments to support secondary end-markets.

“The resource recovery industry can play a crucial role in driving economic recovery post-pandemic. This continued commitment to our industry will have multiple positive touch points for a long time to come,” WMRR CEO, Gayle Sloan said in October.

Jeff Olling, Chief of Stakeholder Relations at iguis Australia told Waste Management Review that while the government’s $250 million dollar funding boost to modernise Australia’s recycling infrastructure is welcome, it’s concerning that food waste was not called out specifically in the budget,

given the government’s commitment to halve food waste in Australia by 2030.

“What we would like to see is a similar framework to the Recycling and Waste Reduction Bill that is currently before the parliament. If passed, this will establish a national industry standard in a bid to transform Australia’s export waste management and recycling sector,” Olling says.

Evans says we can expect to see the successful establishment of the food waste voluntarily commitment program on the government’s agenda.

“I understand it’s the prerogative of opposition and other parties to say they’d do more or something different, but I’m very confident for those involved in the sector and who have been paying close attention for quite a while, they welcome how involved the Federal Government now is in waste and recycling as we continue to work closely with the sector,” he says.

“To anyone who runs a business, invests, innovates or is involved in resource recovery, the Federal Government is elevating the sector and there is a lot of opportunity and challenges. What we’ve done so far is not the end of the story, this is only the start.”

Trevor Evans says the Recycling and Waste Reduction Bill is Australia’s first comprehensive, national framework to improve recycling.

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FEATURED TOPIC – ORGANICS

Foundational documents THE AORA BOARD SEES COVID-19 AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO COLLABORATE AND REPOSITION, WRITES NATIONAL EXECUTIVE OFFICER PETER OLAH.

L

ast week, I was fortunate enough to attend the SA Waste and Resource Recovery Conference in Adelaide. It was my first intestate trip in seven months, and my first large gathering of industry friends and colleagues in just as long. What I enjoyed most was the positivity of the event and the attendees. We know that it’s been a hard year, we’ve all lived through it, but the overarching feeling was upbeat.

That’s one of the real joys of our industry. We acknowledge challenges and failures, but we get on with it.

My presentation to the conference was entitled 2030 Vision: Australia’s World Leading Organics Recycling Industry of 2030 and How to Get There, which is also the title of AORA’s upcoming National Industry Policy Document.

The AORA Board saw COVID-19 as an opportunity: it gave us the time and capacity to reposition AORA and the industry for a future with greater national collaboration and significant growth. That’s why we’ve worked so hard to produce four foundational documents during the lockdown period: AORA’s new Strategic Plan 202023, the Industry Contribution and Capacity studies and our National Industry Policy Document, which will launch late 2020/ early 2021.

Our first industry study, The

Economic Contribution of the Australian Organics Recycling Industry, was launched in March. The report mapped the current economic and environmental contributions of our industry. In addition, the report also modelled the ‘what if ’ scenarios for the industry’s contribution at national organics recycling rates of 70, 80, 90 and 95 per cent – as compared to our current national rate of 51.5 per cent. Needless to say, the potential benefits are huge. But that still left the question: how ready is our industry to expand to these higher organics recycling rates?

The industry’s capacity to increase production is a key component of our national capacity to increase organics recycling rates – and to achieve the benefits this brings. That’s why AORA committed to delivering a second industry study, in conjunction with the Federal and South Australian Governments. The study will launch a few weeks from now, and the data provided through our recent national industry survey forms an integral part of it. AORA will be running member and government webinars to brief the industry on the study, but in the meantime, I am pleased to give a sneak preview of some key results. Industry satisfaction with its performance is strong, with three in four businesses indicating they are somewhat, mostly,

Peter Olah says AORA’s forthcoming policy document will examine how industry can reach a 95 per cent organics recovery rate by 2030.

or very satisfied with their overall performance. The three strongest areas are industry leadership, business stability and high productivity. The three areas needing most improvement are profitability, the costs of production and the opportunities for growth. Additionally, the four largest obstacles to industry growth are regulatory policy uncertainty, contamination of input material, government policy and business licensing and operating permits.

The report will provide an independent and robust assessment of the industry’s ability to step up as an economic, employment and environmental provider of benefit.

It will also provide a direct link to our final and arguably most important piece of work: AORA’s National Industry Policy Document.

Together, these three works will answer the question: how do we get to 80 per cent recycling of organics by 2025 and 95 per cent by 2030?

I look forward to telling you more in future issues of WMR.

www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 21

FEATURED TOPIC – ORGANICS

A smarter alternative THE FUTURE OF WASTE MANAGEMENT LIES IN IMPROVED RESOURCE RECOVERY AND REUSE OF ORGANIC MATERIAL. NORTH-WEST RECYCLING CENTRE’S DAVID MURPHY EXPLAINS.

To eliminate contaminants, North-West Recycling Centre relies on a Komptech Nemus 2700 mobile drum screen.

W

ith a target of net zero emissions from organic waste to landfill by 2030, the NSW Government’s Net Zero Emissions Plan is set reshape the state’s organics recovery sector.

The plan outlines a series of targeted actions including supporting best-practice food and green waste management infrastructure, and ensuring compost or other organic soils are of the highest quality for land application.

While ambitious government diversion targets are often meet with cynicism due to end-market constraints,

22 / WMR / December 2020

for materials like organics, those constraints are largely absent.

The market for repurposed organic waste is there, with operators across Australia poised to capitalise on heightened support and consumer awareness.

One such operator is David Murphy, who’s North-West Recycling Centre has been providing customers with a smarter alternative to waste management since 1996.

Located in Sydney’s urban fringe, the North-West Recycling Centre team is committed to providing a 360-degree specialist recycling solution for green

waste products.

“We strive to provide a new sustainability program to aid government agencies and Australian businesses to reduce their carbon footprint whilst reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill,” Murphy says.

The facility operates as a depot for commercial gardeners, landscapers, local councils, horticulturalists, agriculturalist and those in civil works to manage their waste in a responsible and sustainable manner.

Once organic waste is received, it goes through a 12-week composting process that transforms the material into a range

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with the Nemus is mirrored in his of high-value natural products such as relationship with Komptech CEA, soil conditioners and mulch.

To facilitate this process and eliminate who he has been working with for over a decade. contaminants, North-West Recycling “Anything we need and they’re there.

Centre relies on a Komptech Nemus Everything is a matter of urgency for 2700 mobile drum screen, purchased them and they attend to it straight away. through Australia’s exclusive Komptech Loyalty is the word I would use, we’re distributor CEA. very happy with the relationship,” Murphy explains that throughout he says. his long career in organics processing, In addition to the Nemus, North-West he has operated a Nemus screen Recycling Centre operate a Komptech exclusively.

Crambo 5200 dual-shaft shredder, “I’ve never worked with another which features two slow-running drums drum screen because the Nemus is with shredding tools to minimise fantastically reliable. It runs nine and a fine particle and dust emissions while half hours a day five days a week with resisting contraries. minimal downtime,” he says.

In the extra-large shredding chamber, Contrary to competitor products, two 2.8 metre counterrotating toothed the Nemus leverages an open engine drums ensure positive feed. From bulky compartment accessible from all sides branches, cuttings and rootstocks of – adding an extra layer of safety for onany size to used wood contaminated site material management. The engine with contraries, the Crambo shreds unit is also hydraulically extendable, everything down to a defined allowing for streamlined oil checks. particle size.

Within the drum itself, improved The shredder has helped North-West material flow provides up to 10 per Recycling Centre’s bottom line, Murphy cent more throughput than previous says, facilitating significant return on models. Fine particles are discharged by a cross belt, with the one-piece investment. design preventing material trickle at “Environmentally it’s a very efficient transfer points. machine and the outputs are fantastic.

Murphy’s longstanding It’s PM also acoustically impressive and a lot WMR_Oct20_ThirdPage.pdf 1 relationship 19/10/2020 2:34:21

North-West Recycling Centre and Komptech CEA have been working together for over a decade.

quieter than previous machines we’ve used,” Murphy says.

Powered by a modern Caterpillar engine, the design of the Crambo muffles the engine compartment to keep noise emissions to a minimum.

With load-dependent rotation speed regulation, the hydraulic drum drive ensures that full advantage is taken of the engine output.

Murphy adds that the Crambo requires less maintenance than comparable shredders and is more effective at removing contamination.

“We’re always working to improve the high-quality product that we make, and that’s all about the way we process and remove any contaminants,” he says.

FEATURED TOPIC – ORGANICS

Mimicking natural digestion SINCE INSTALLING VEOLIA’S ONSITE DIGESTER SOLUTION, HARRIS FARMS HAS DIVERTED OVER 100 TONNES OF FOOD WASTE FROM LANDFILL AND COUNTING.

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ach year, over seven million tonnes of food is wasted in Australia, costing the economy an estimated $20 billion. The drivers of food waste are varied and complex, occurring at every point along the supply and consumption chain.

Households account for roughly one third of Australia’s food waste – throwing away 3.1 million tonnes of edible food each year. However, the NSW EPA’s 2017 Food Waste Opportunities report suggests the two principal contributors of food waste sent to landfill are the wholesale and retail sectors.

Despite growing mechanisms to reduce food waste, as with all material streams, a level of wastage is largely unavoidable. With that in mind, a growing number of businesses across Australia are seeking innovative and bespoke solutions to minimise the environmental impacts of their waste.

Harris Farms, a grocery chain with 27 locations across NSW, is one such business. While Harris Farms’ feels more like a farmer’s market than a supermarket, its business model is structured around the notion of corporate responsibility.

This is highlighted in the company’s Sustainability Manifesto, which lists the war on waste as a key objective.

As per the manifesto, Harris Farms is committed to integrating the waste hierarchy into its operations, notably honing in on food and packaging waste.

24 / WMR / December 2020

Veolia’s Arif Chowdhury and Harris Farms’ Charbel Daher have teamed up to create a sustainable onsite solution for organic waste.

This is a commitment shared by Veolia Australia and New Zealand, which while operating on the opposite end of the waste chain, is equally driven by corporate responsibility and the drive towards organics recovery. Veolia is focused on delivering economic, environmental and social benefits, not only for itself and its clients, but the local communities in which it operates.

Realising this shared commitment, the two companies teamed up in 2018, with Veolia facilitating an onsite food waste digester solution for Harris Farms.

Charbel Daher, Harris Farms Commercial Manager and GM Logistics, explains that prior to engaging Veolia, Harris Farms sent all of its waste to landfill.

“We wanted to find a sustainable solution for the environment, and at the same time, find something that was going to be cost effective,” he says.

“We looked at different options and then started talking to Veolia, who came up with the idea of installing onsite food digesters.”

The mobile units essentially mimic a natural digestion process, with aerobic digestion facilitated via natural microbes automatically sprayed into the machine. Paired with oxygen and naturally occurring heat, the microbes digest food waste down to a liquid.

Once the material reaches liquid form, the digester passes it through an in-built filter that discharges it from the unit.

Harris Farms installed its first digester on a trial basis at its Drummoyne store in April 2018.

Once they saw how successfully the digester processed food waste, Daher says Harris Farms began rolling units out across other stores. To date, Harris Farms has nine digester operating across NSW.

According to Daher, the digesters are both environmentally and economically sustainable. They reduce waste to landfill, while simultaneously costing Harris Farms next to nothing to operate outside rental fees.

“From a financial perspective dumping waste into landfill is getting more and more expensive, and putting it into the digester is significantly cheaper,” Daher says.

He adds that in a recent assessment of the numbers, Harris Farms found it had diverted over 100 tonnes of organic waste out of landfill and into the digesters.

“A lot of our stores used to have five or six bins on the loading docks, and since installing the digesters that’s been cut in half,” Daher says.

“Plus, because we’re not dumping organic waste into the bins anymore,

it’s a much cleaner and hygienic environment for the people working at the stores.”

The digesters are easy to use Daher explains, with Veolia facilitating training sessions with staff each time Harris Farms installs a new digester.

“It’s very straight forward. It’s just about segregating the waste, knowing what can and can’t go into it and letting it run. You can also go on feeding it throughout the day,” he says.

Continuous feeding is a key advantage of the food digesters, with the metabolisation and digestion rate accelerated by ongoing input.

A single machine can process up to 900 kilograms of food waste a day, cutting the harmful emissions associated with transport while reducing waste removal costs.

While the digesters provide a

localised solution, they complement Veolia’s larger-scale innovations in the organics processing space.

Through its facilities Earthpower in Sydney and Dandenong NRS in Melbourne, the waste management giant is a leading processor of food waste organics in metropolitan markets. Furthermore, Veolia is working with a number of clients in sectors across food and beverage, healthcare, ports, retail, grocery and education, to help reduce and or eliminate organic waste to landfill.

With aerobic digestion, Veolia is stepping away from the linear production and consumption approach and moving towards the circular economy, an economy in which the waste discarded by some systematically becomes valuable resources for others.

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FEATURED TOPIC – ORGANICS

Hydrostatic shredding THE RURAL CITY OF WANGARATTA’S RECENT MOVES TO BOOST ORGANICS RECOVERY SAW COUNCIL TEAM UP WITH EQUIPMENT SPECIALISTS FINLAY WASTE AND RECYCLING.

T

he Rural City of Wangaratta, like most communities across Australia, faces major challenges with the collection and disposal of waste. Most notably, a growing population and ageing landfill.

That said, council recognises that most household and commercial waste produced in the city is recoverable, and has adopted a proactive approach which focuses on the provision of systems and services to recover recyclables and food and garden organic waste, prior to disposal in landfill.

The TDS820’s hydrostatic drive provides increased protection against contamination.

26 / WMR / December 2020

To support this approach and boost recovery rates, council began construction on a new organics processing facility at Bowser landfill in North Wangaratta in 2018.

The facility commenced operations in January this year.

The plant has the capacity to process 12,000 tonnes of organic material each year, and will have the ability to increase its production over the next five years.

It comprises seven bunkers with a capacity of 425 cubic metres per cell,

with processing undertaken via covered aerated state pile composting.

The process can handle a range of organic feedstock materials, with the main inputs including kitchen, garden and food wastes from commercial businesses and residential kerbside collections.

To facilitate this process and capitalise on the benefits of high-quality compost, Wangaratta Council understood that it needed a heavy-duty shredder to perform the initial stages of separating, shredding and size reduction.

As such, it put out a request for tender for a new, diesel powered, rubber track mounted, slow speed shredder in 2019.

Council received 12 submissions, with the final tender awarded to Finlay Waste and Recycling.

Finlay delivered a Terex Ecotec TDS820 Slow Speed Shredder to Wangaratta City Council in February this year.

The tender was evaluated against cost to council – direct and indirect, warranty and parts, fuel efficiency, delivery time, Australian Standards and local content.

The final evaluation was based upon the documentation submitted at tender and additional documentation supplied following an interview process and site visits – with the TDS820 coming out on top.

According to Brian Bowman, council’s Waste Operations Team Leader, while the quality of the TDS was integral to council’s decision, Finlay’s committed approach to customer support was the standout.

“We get a phone call from Finlay once every two weeks to see how the shredder is going. Their back-up service is exceptional,” he says.

Bowman adds that the TDS820 has been running efficiently and is well suited to support Wangaratta’s organics processing operations.

The TDS820 features customisable shredding programs that give operators the opportunity to configure the machine to their specific requirements, reduce material wrapping and maximise production.

Designed with independently driven shafts, the doubleshaft slow speed shredder enables excellent performance in even the most challenging of applications.

Key features include a hydrostatic drive that provides increased protection against contamination and allows for bi-directional shredding. Furthermore, the TDS820’s two-metre-long shafts are manufactured with a fully welded tooth configuration, which facilitates high-level throughput and excellent material reduction.

The shredder’s independent gearboxes enable each shaft to run separately, reducing material wrappage for effective shredding operations.

Additional features include a tipping feeder that increases feed area, and hopper extensions that provide increased capacity in bulky applications. The machine is manoeuvred via a robust tracked undercarriage, making it highly efficient in difficult terrain.

Bowman explains that as a key component of Wangaratta’s new organics facility, the TDS820 is helping council achieve its wider waste and resource recovery objectives.

The successful commissioning of the organics processing plant, for which the shredder was essential, is also working towards reducing Wangaratta’s greenhouse gas emissions.

As a part of its works approval application to the EPA, council modelled its Greenhouse Gas Emissions using the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act’s model to measure the difference between having its own facility and transporting off-site.

The results of this modelling clearly indicated that if council were to operate an organics facility locally, there would be a reduction of CO2 entering the atmosphere by 35.26 tonnes annually.

“We made sure that we did our homework to get the right machine for job, and we’re glad that we made the right call going with Finlay. It’s an ideal piece of equipment for our operations,” Bowman says.

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FEATURED TOPIC – ORGANICS

Rapid optimal bioconversion of organic waste SYNTEK ENVIRONMENTAL’S ULTRAVERTE PROCESS CAN CONVERT ALL KINDS OF WASTE INTO LOW VOLUME, VALUE ADDED PRODUCTS. GENERAL MANAGER JOHN NEWTON EXPLAINS.

O

ver the last decade, Syntek Environmental has been focusing on technology and development to minimise the environmental impact of industrial and municipal wastewater and solid wastes.

Its Ultraverte bioconversion process tackles the later, providing an accessible and efficient solution for solid waste management. While suited to multiple waste streams, John

Newton, Syntek General Manager, highlights Ultraverte’s effective application to organic waste.

Ultraverte utilises naturally derived, synergistically linked bacteria strains to rapidly convert almost all kinds of organic waste into a free flowing, dry powder substance.

“The mass of waste material remaining after conversion is considerably less than the input mass,

with over 95 per cent of organic matter converting to water vapour and inert biogas,” Newton says.

“The end product has wide applications such as a composting accelerator, soil bio-additive and spill absorbent.”

Ultraverte differs from the dehydration process as temperature during bioconversion is maintained at 25-35°C. The temperature is

In intensive animal production such as poultry and pig farms, animal waste and bedding can be loaded into the Ultraverte reactor directly, with no ammonia produced during the conversion process.

28 / WMR / December 2020

largely maintained by heat generated by bacterial reactions. And, most bioconversion of organic waste is completed within 24 hours, compared to six to eight weeks in the composting process.

“A major environmental benefit of the Ultraverte bioconversion process is to avoid the production of odours and methane gas, which is bound to occur if the material becomes anaerobic or anoxic,” Newton explains.

“This is known to happen when organic waste is sent to landfill or for direct soil injection or surface land application. However, through Ultraverte, all pathogens present in the sludge are destroyed.”

According to Newton, additional benefits include a reduction in waste volume and weight, as well as onsite treatment, which results in a significant reduction in transport costs.

Ultravert technology has proven benefits in many applications, such as fruit and vegetable, putrescible waste with packaging, dairy cheese whey, cardboard converting and printing, cosmetics, paint, solvent and refinery crude oil.

“In fruit and vegetable waste processing, waste material has been converted into a dry granular material

Ultraverte uses naturally derived, synergistically linked bacteria strains to rapidly convert organic waste into a free flowing, dry powder substance.

over a reaction time of 12-24 hours,” Newton says.

“The end product can then be returned to land as a soil additive for fruit, crop and vegetable growth. It also aids in maintaining moisture levels in the soil, with remaining bacteria aiding nutrient release.”

Furthermore, mixed municipal putrescible waste containing packaging such as cardboard and plastic can be treated and compacted for disposal, or plastic can be sieved from the organic product. The plastic can then be recycled, with organic material used as a soil additive, Newton says.

Ultraverte bioconversion equipment’s current capacity varies from 100 kilograms to 10 tonnes, and can be installed with multiple units on site to suit demand and specification.

“The operation has low energy inputs, minimal maintenance and operation requirements,” Newton says.

“The Ultraverte process has been proven over 10 years of operation in hazardous waste conversion and is now changing industry practice in organic waste treatment.”

For more information contact: info@ syntekenvironmental.com.au.

FEATURED TOPIC – ORGANICS

FOGO to Fertiliser in 10 days FERTILISER PRODUCTION FROM FOGO PROCEEDS IN A CARBON NEGATIVE MANUFACTURING RHYTHM, WRITES DAVID MURPHY OF THE UNIVERSAL GREENING GROUP.

I

t’s all over in just 10 days: FOGO converted into best quality biological fertiliser. The first stage converts the FOGO into compost, with one tonne of compost blending into three tonnes of biological fertiliser – a faithful reproduction of the fabled Terra Preta soils of the Amazon Basin. An actual living, breathing fertiliser that is teeming with biological life.

This Australian Terra Preta® will be sold as a solid for spreading by any standard fertiliser spreader or as a liquid which can be sprayed out by a simple firefighter pump. The liquid can also be dehydrated, which can be transported huge distances at minimal freight cost. The basic forms of Terra Preta® perform different functions, complimentary to each other and resulting in enhanced robust, vigorous, plant growth in soil. This in turn develops genuine sustainable properties and an inherent resistance to plant pests and diseases.

DOBAS is the process name, and owned by The Universal Greening Group. DOBAS is the acronym for Dynamically Oxygenated Biologically Assisted System and it’s all carried out indoors in a fertiliser manufacturing factory. DOBAS is an intensely aerobic process, free of any unpleasant odour.

The treatment area is compact.

A FOGO processing plant of 500

30 / WMR / December 2020

tonne per day would require a Clean Room of around 1000 square metres, a fraction of the area needed by a simple outdoor composter receiving the same volume of FOGO. The rest of the space is given over to blending the compost with minerals, bio-char and carbohydrates to make the basic bio-fertiliser. Specific minerals can easily be added, providing for any particular soil deficiencies or chosen crop demands.

There are significant benefits to processing indoors, such as: • No unsightly litter.

• The adverse influence of the weather on product quality and delivery schedules is also removed.

• The ability to take delivery of contracted quantities of FOGO in all weather conditions.

• Fertiliser production proceeds in a manufacturing rhythm, with no stop/start caused by changes in weather.

DOBAS is similar to row composting, but is neither open nor is it a windrow system. Not only that, but the DOBAS biology, robotic processing machine and Clean Room setup are all integral tools in the efficiency and effectiveness of the composting process.

While the DOBAS processing machine will compost anything in any location, take it out of the Clean Room and efficiency declines

significantly. A Singapore-based early version of a DOBAS processing machine, operating outdoors, is at: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=nuAdcOTZ9C8.

There the DOBAS Machine processes 200 tonnes per day, of green waste, every day but Sunday.

In just 10 days, a starting carbon to nitrogen ratio of 100 or more is transformed into a ratio of 20-22.

The latest developments were patented only in May, and already Universal Greening (India) is up and running. Of considerable environmental benefit, not only is the production of methane averted by diversion from landfill to this alternative treatment, but the total processing is climate positive.

As the reader will know, there are two gases produced in composting – steam and carbon dioxide. The double environmental benefit in DOBAS is not only by way of diversion from landfill, but the fact that the CO2 generated is harvested and sequestered. Another environmental positive is that each factory will have its own WtE plant generating its own power.

The process is carbon negative, with no fossil fuels used in production.

And wherever the Terra Preta products are used, a carbon sink is created by stimulated photosynthesis.

Any farmer using Terra Preta®

products will find that after around five years – other factors being OK – they will no longer need fertiliser in full doses, just a minor top-up. As such, the farmer will no longer be dependent on buying fertilisers.

Frequent applications of Terra Preta® over say, five years, will establish a profile showing dark soil to a depth of over 600 millimetres.

That is the fertility bank plants can draw on in established bio-farmed soils. Research has shown that these fertility banks will continue to grow at a rate of around 0.4 centimetres per year. One reason bio-fertilisers are stable in the soil is because of the biochar in the blend. Biochar can have a surface area of 500m2 per gram. It’s full of caves and covered with nooks, hooks and craggy places, which makes it hard to displace and also store any soluble minerals awaiting demand from the plants. It provides places in which bacteria can glue themselves with polysaccharides.

Bacteria are the richest source of nitrogen on the planet, with a C:N of only five. The system is designed so that the bacteria convert water insoluble minerals to the plantavailable form at a ‘just-in-time’ rate,

so that the plants grow vigorously but proportionately.

We don’t want to see all growth go into stalk and leaves with no fruit or grain forming. So, things are set so that only some of the bacteria will die fairly soon after application of the Terra Preta, to give the plants a kick start. As the bacteria consume all the available food and start to die, they replicate themselves against the time when food becomes available again, and then ‘die’. These animals, the great decomposers of the world, decompose rapidly and give out carbon dioxide and nitrogen.

Nitrifying bacteria in the soil convert the nitrogen to nitrate, the form in which it is absorbed by plants.

Some of the CO2 is absorbed by the soil moisture to form carbonic acid which is around pH 6.8 – near neutral. This helps to maintain the soil as a good growth environment for crops. The rest gradually percolates up through the soil and on breaking free, is captured by the stomata underneath the leaves of the plants.

If there is nitrate present around the roots – and we just showed there is – there is photosynthesis, and plant growth supplemental CO2 is

drawn from the air. Azotobacters in the Universal Greening Terra Preta bacterial community draw additional atmospheric nitrogen from the air, which is inaccessible to plants, and release it in the form of ammonium ions into the soil, if required. We live in a sea of nitrogen – we breathe 78 per cent nitrogen - why buy it when nature supplies it free?

Terra Preta works so well because the compost in the blend has the very important soil benevolent bacteria in elevated numbers. It is because these populations are so high that the DOBAS compost can be used successfully as a base for making an effective biological fertiliser.

Ordinary compost just won’t cut it.

At present there are around 3000 biological and 140,000 conventional farmers in Australia. All are able to use this Bio-fertiliser and will improve their bottom line by doing so.

The market is infinite and if that’s not enough, there’s export of the bio-fert, technology, plant and management regime. The Terra Preta system provides a clear pathway towards achievement of the Cool Soil initiative for emissions reduction in agriculture.

Terra Preta translates as black soil. Found throughout the Amazon Basin, the Terra Preta soils have held their amazing fertility for over 3500 years.

www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 31

Foreword I am delighted to virtually lead this Invest Northern Ireland trade delegation to Australasian Waste and Recycling Expo (AWRE), 25-26 November online event.

Northern Ireland is well known to be the world leading region in the manufacture of mobile bulk processing and wet processing equipment – In fact over 40% of the tracked mobile crushing and screening products in the world are made in Northern Ireland.

For more than 50 years, mobile equipment from the region has provided solutions to the processing of sand, aggregate and other bulk materials. More recently, this technology has become a solution of choice in reclaiming substantial value from waste which would otherwise end up in landfill.

Northern Ireland’s worldclass technology is well positioned to provide real solutions to Australia’s growing recycling sector. Key areas of expertise are crushing, screening, sortation, washing, conveying and size reduction.

Materials handling technologies from Northern Ireland are long recognised for their durability and quality in Australia’s mining and quarrying sectors and many of the companies on our virtual delegation have already developed strong links with Australia.

AWRE provides an excellent opportunity to showcase Northern Ireland’s expertise and reputation as a global centre for mobile bulk processing and wet processing equipment and to establish and grow international collaborations between Northern Ireland and Australia.

I look forward to a constructive and successful online exhibition for all our companies.

Steve Harper

Executive Director International Business Head of Group Invest Northern Ireland

SPECIAL FEATURE

Recycling’s Silicon Valley AS NORTHERN IRELAND CONTINUES TO BE A MAJOR PLAYER IN THE MATERIALS HANDLING MARKET, WASTE MANAGEMENT REVIEW SPEAKS WITH KEY STAKEHOLDERS ABOUT THE ROLE EQUIPMENT INGENUITY CAN PLAY IN AUSTRALIA’S CIRCULAR ECONOMY TRANSITION. technologies and processing solutions.

“Northern Ireland’s materials processing equipment is already highly regarded within Australia’s mining, construction and quarrying sectors for its quality and durability. It is a natural fit in providing solutions to Australia’s recycling sector,” Hendrikssen says.

Over half a century ago Powerscreen and Finlay developed mobile screening systems that revolutionised the way quarries separated and sorted aggregate.

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espite its relatively small landmass and a population of just 1.88 million, Northern Ireland is home to one of the world’s most successful clusters of engineering companies. In fact, almost half of all tracked mobile crushing and screening products in over 100 countries are made in Northern Ireland.

For more than 50 years, mobile equipment from the region has provided solutions for the processing of sand, aggregate and other bulk materials. More recently, this technology has become a solution of choice in reclaiming substantial value from waste which would otherwise end up in landfill.

To showcase these solutions and

assist Australia’s circular economy transition, nine Northern Ireland companies are exhibiting at the Australasian Waste & Recycling Expo.

Covering a range of processing solutions, the companies are BlueMAC Manufacturing, bmi trailers, CDE Global, Terex Washing Systems, EDGE Innovate, Kiverco, Sensoteq, Smiley Monroe and CK International. The virtual stand is spearheaded by Invest NI, the regional economic development agency for Northern Ireland, with its Australia and New Zealand Regional Trade and Investment Director Peter Hendrikssen commenting that he is delighted that the virtual delegation represents a wide range of

THE COMPANIES SPEAK CK International is a leading supplier of waste compaction equipment, manufacturing an extensive range of customisable balers.

According to the company’s International Sales Manager Natasha Mitchell, Northern Ireland’s position within the waste and recycling equipment market is largely driven by the country’s strong entrepreneurial attitude.

“A magazine editor from England once described Northern Ireland to me as the Silicon Valley of engineering,” she says.

The market is expanding, Mitchell adds, with the effects of producer responsibility and consumer behaviour shining a spotlight on the importance of sustainability.

“The recycling market is changing so much every year and new technology needs to be incorporated into machines to help customers overcome the

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SPECIAL FEATURE

challenges they face,” she says.

“In Northern Ireland, we are not afraid to try new things when it comes to developing our machinery. When customers ask for weird and wonderful things, we always give it a go.”

Similarly, Con Gallagher, Kiverco Global Sales Manager, explains that Northern Ireland has had a vibrant and sizeable engineering sector for more than 150 years.

“Ship building was a huge industry here in the 19th century, with thousands of people employed to build some of the world’s largest and most prestigious luxury liners, the Titanic included,” he says.

“John Finlay started a small blockmaking business in 1953 and added a screening business in 1958.

From there, the industry we now know grew and has become the largest provider of static and mobile equipment for the material processing industry.”

Gallagher notes that the global aggregates industry has a wide spectrum of regulations and specifications for the use of recycled aggregates. He adds, however, that volumes used will increase significantly, with more and more developing markets getting on board with a recycling focus.

“Kiverco will play a key role in the growth of the recycling sector as we have the technology today that will help companies recover more and more recyclable product in the future,” Gallagher says.

Ryan Wright, International Sales Manager of conveyor belt experts Smiley Monroe, expresses an added practical view, highlighting the need to export due to smaller domestic markets as a key driver behind Northern Ireland’s significant international market share. He adds that quarries, sand and gravel pits in Northern Ireland are constrained by land mass, suggesting the solution to saving space and negotiating difficult terrain was equipment that is

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compact, adaptable and mobile.

“Having been a supplier to the Australian market for many years, Smiley Monroe is well placed to serve the expanding Australian waste and recycling sector with high quality, competitively priced, heavy duty and cleated conveyor belting,” Wright says.

Terex Washing Systems is a correspondingly large market player, with its long heritage in crushing, screening and washing stretching back more than 60 years through Terex Finlay and Powerscreen.

“As these brands went from strength to strength around the world, Northern Ireland became synonymous with this industry and has been established as a hub for innovation and excellence,” James Murphy, Terex Australia and New Zealand Regional Sales Manager says.

“In recent years, there has been a shift in European markets towards recycling of C&D waste to reuse sand and aggregates. This helps preserve earth’s precious natural resources and also reduces the amount of waste sent to landfill.”

Equipment from Northern Ireland is renowned for taking C&D waste and turning it back into valuable materials, and as a global market leader, Terex has been present in the Australian market for decades.

“In continuing to offer the latest innovations in the industry, both Terex and the Australian market have been able to mutually benefit from one another,” Murphy says.

While the quality of Northern Ireland’s equipment manufacturing in undisputed, the country is also home to Sensoteq, which designs and manufactures bespoke wireless sensors for remote machine health monitoring.

Waste and recycling plants aim to minimise the consumption of natural resources. And Sensoteq’s remote wireless solution can help run these

sites more efficiently by monitoring different assets across the plant. Idir Boudaoud, Sensoteq Founder and CEO, explains that the company’s products are easy to install on existing equipment and machinery, and with 24/7 remote monitoring capabilities, plants are able to run more efficiently.

“The waste and recycling market is rapidly growing globally, as more countries are putting efforts to reduce their total environmental impact.

Sensoteq’s system is a perfect fit to this industry and we see it as a direct expansion to our mining and quarrying product offerings,” Boudaoud says.

LESSONS FOR AUSTRALIA BlueMAC Manufacturing specialises in the design and manufacture of cutting-edge recycling systems, MRFs and bespoke machinery. According to Sean McBride, BlueMAC International Sales Manager, the company’s innovative approach is largely market driven, with the UK and Northern Ireland waste markets experiencing increased demand for higher purity levels in recovered products.

“Our engineers understand the complex compliance requirements for the construction of waste plants.

Whether building a complex plant in Australia or a simple system to separate C&D waste in the UK, we can meet all regulations,” he says.

McBride explains that with significant investment throughout Australia in recent years towards static waste processing facilities, it’s clear there is a genuine appetite for the drive towards zero waste.

Brendan McIlvanna, bmi trailers Managing Director, expresses similar sentiments.

“From a visit made in conjunction with Invest NI, we learnt a lot about the Australian market, by communicating and most importantly listening to operators in Australia.

CDE has installed and commissioned projects across Australia, from Perth to Bundaberg. Highlights include projects in the industrial sands, C&D waste recycling and sand and aggregates sectors.

“We see a change coming as a result of the new restrictions from China, and with Asian countries and the importation of waste for processing.” bmi trailers, which is celebrating 20 years in business this year, are the longest established manufacturer and supplier for waste transfer trailers in the UK and Ireland.

“The immediate challenge now for Australia is to look inward at how it can develop new techniques to reinvent waste, which is very reminiscent of where Ireland and the UK were almost 20 years ago,” McIlvanna says.

He adds that while new legislation will drive profit and fuel development, it will work best if authorities watch and learn from the countries who have walked the path before. “bmi’s part in this is to bring transfer trailers to this new market that work, are efficient, safe and robust,” he says.

With landfill diversion targets and tax continuing to rise across Australia, waste transfer stations

are under increasing pressure to extract and recover the maximum volume of recyclable materials from their diverse waste streams, EDGE Innovate Territory Sales Manager Tom Connolly explains.

Facilitating that extraction is a central focus for EDGE Innovate, who’s range of products have been designed to provide the most efficient and cost-effective recycling process possible.

“Obtaining the quickest return on your capital investment depends on how quickly operators can be up and running, and the volume of commodities that an operator can recover from their waste stream.

“EDGE Innovate’s range of mobile solutions are tried and tested, are quick and easy to set up, require no on-site civil works, represent a low capital outlay and are proven to achieve high commodity recovery levels,” Connolly says.

Similarly, Daniel Webber, CDE’s Regional Manager Australasia, highlights significant growth in the

Australian resource recovery market.

“There’s serious investment in recycling now, and that supports a higher level of capital expenditure, which in turn leads to more confidence to invest in large scale fixed plants for a variety of waste streams,” he says.

According to Webber, Northern Ireland’s position in the market comes down to access to raw materials, a strong labour base and the clustering effect of companies and intelligence feeding into one another.

“What we can learn from our experience in Europe is that the benchmark is only going to get higher.

Previously, recycled material was seen as second rate,” Webber says.

“But what we’re seeing now is that the people treating these waste streams and returning it to market are looking to create a material that is as good as virgin material. That’s a big part of our development plan and vision.”

For more information visit: investni. com/awre.

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WASTE MANAGEMENT IN ACTION – SOFTWARE

Collaboration at the weighbridge THROUGH THE INSTALLATION OF MANDALAY TECHNOLOGIES’ WEIGHBRIDGE SYSTEM, WMRC IS BETTER POSITIONED TO DELIVER ON ITS COMMITMENT TO EFFICIENTLY MANAGE WASTE FOR PERTH’S CENTRAL WESTERN COMMUNITIES.

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n the Western Australian Government’s Waste Strategy 2030, Environment Minister Stephen Dawson notes that the state has one of the highest rates of waste generation per capita in the nation, and the equal to second lowest rate of resource recovery.

“We have an obligation to our current community and generations to come to generate less waste, extract more from our valuable resources and to better manage the disposal of our waste,” he said.

Dawson added that with an increasing population and the state’s current waste management performance, maintaining the status quo was not an option.

Since the waste strategy was released Close consultation with Mandalay technicians allowed WMRC to create a tailor-made weighbridge program.

in early 2019, the Western Australian Government has made significant strides.

In October this year, the state’s container deposit scheme was launched, seeing 10 million returns in less than two weeks.

Additionally, the state’s 202021 budget, released October 8, allocated $35 million to support the implementation of COAG’s forthcoming waste export ban, via infrastructure grants funding and industrial land.

While state government support is critical, achieving Western Australia’s objective to recover more value from waste requires equally committed local governments.

As such, the Western Metropolitan Regional Council (WMRC) functions via a multifaceted, multi-stakeholder approach, whereby member councils collaborate to capitalise on economies of scale.

In the past financial year, WMRC doubled its recycling rate from 23 to 46 per cent of all materials received.

ECONOMIES OF SCALE WMRC was established 30 years ago by agreement amongst its five inner suburban member councils – the Towns of Claremont, Cottesloe and Mosman Park, the Shire of Peppermint Grove and the City of Subiaco.

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At the time, Claremont’s regional landfill was not far off closure, meaning Perth’s western suburbs would have to rely on remote disposal sites. Stefan Frodsham, WMRC Chief Executive Officer, explains that transport efficiency was therefore an essential element for municipal waste management services.

Consequently, the initial objective for WMRC was to construct and operate a waste transfer station.

“Increasingly over the past 30 years, waste minimisation, reuse and recycling have been seen as vital to environmentally responsible waste management in the region, so the WMRC soon established community recycling services at the new waste transfer station,” Frodsham says.

The WMRC’s member councils in Perth’s central western suburbs are relatively small, providing services to council areas ranging from just 600 households in the Shire of Peppermint Grove, to 7200 in the City of Subiaco.

“As such, it would be costly and inefficient for them each to have specialist in-house waste management expertise and services, so the shared services model which the WMRC embodies to this day made perfect sense,” Frodsham says.

According to Frodsham, the joint model allows member councils to benefit from WMRC’s economies of

scale in waste management services.

These benefits extend to efficient waste transfer, procurement of haulage, treatment and disposal services, community recycling drop-off points and advocacy in representing the interests of member councils to

to 100,000 – more than double that of its member councils’ 47,000 people.

WMRC also caters for commercial customers drawn from across its central west metropolitan catchment area.

“Modern waste management is a

WMRC takes a multifaceted, multi-stakeholder approach to waste management and resource recovery.

State and Federal Governments.

Frodsham adds that WMRC is governed by five councillors, each appointed by their respective member council.

“This ensures the perspective of each of the WMRC’s member councils is represented in strategy, policy and major operational decisions,” he says.

While unusual for a regional council, WMRC services many residents from adjoining councils, with its West Metro Recycling Centre located within the boundaries of the City of Nedlands and the Town of Cambridge.

As a result, WMRC has had to scale its waste management services to meet the demands of a population of close

complex business,” Frodsham says.

“Long gone are the days when WMRC’s business mostly involving receiving municipal solid waste and hauling it for landfill disposal.

“Nowadays, we receive multiple waste streams from a wide cross section of customers.”

A DATA CENTRIC SYSTEM To manage growth at the West Metro Recycling Centre and deliver on its commitment to minimise and efficiently manage waste for Perth’s central western communities and organisations, WMRC recently sought to upgrade its weighbridge system.

“We want to consign as much waste

as possible for recycling and treatment instead of disposal,” Keith Swift, WMRC Operations Manager says.

“It’s essential to our business that we can accurately track, record, report, receipt and despatch of waste.

“And the key to this is a modern, flexible weighbridge operating system.”

From there, the organisation developed a collaborative working relationship with Mandalay Technologies.

The request, broadly, was for a weighbridge system that would integrate seamlessly with WMRC’s accounting system, ending the costly and time-consuming hand recording and subsequent re-entry of data for invoicing that its legacy system required.

Swift explains that the organisation also wanted the flexibility of custom reports and the ability to quickly provide detailed reports to WMRC’s principal customers and member councils.

Prior to engaging Mandalay, Swift says WMRC had a good idea of the capability of modern weighbridge operating systems and the great improvements they offer to efficiency, especially in relation to synchronising accounts.

“We are also in a business where access to fast, accurate and reliable data is king, including the ability to read live information across the weighbridge remotely,” he says.

“Lastly, we expected a lot for our money as we are in a highly competitive business. Mandalay ticked all the boxes for us.”

According to Swift, the objectives of WMRC’s request for quotation from potential weighbridge software suppliers was clear: replacement of our long-used system to one more suitable for a modern-day waste transfer station serving a diverse set of customers.

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WASTE MANAGEMENT IN ACTION – SOFTWARE

WMRC provides waste management services for a population of close to 100,000 people.

“The new software had to be user friendly, and capable of directly interfacing with the WMRC’s cloudbased Xero accounting software,” Swift says.

“It also needed to be capable of producing timely and accurate management reports by customer and category of waste.”

Furthermore, WMRC needed the new software to be capable of being installed and commissioned with minimum disruption to daily weighbridge operations.

“Mandalay achieved all of these objectives,” Swift says.

Mandalay’s weighbridge software has been developed over 20 years with the collective intelligence of over 400 waste processing and quarry facilities.

And in July, it went live, representing the first major upgrade to WMRC’s weighbridge software in almost 28 years of operation.

As highlighted in the organisation’s August 2020 Ordinary Council Meeting Minutes, the investment significantly reduces the organisation’s exposure to risk, as the original software system relied on backup services delivered by the product developer.

“The key benefits that we are seeing now is ease of use at the weighbridge for our operators, which in turn facilitates a faster experience for our

38 / WMR / December 2020

customers,” the minutes read.

“Going forward, we will benefit from improved analytics which can be distributed to our member councils, and there are also a number of options that can be added to the current system that could further enhance the service to our local councils, residents and commercial customers.”

Swift explains that close consultation with Mandalay technicians allowed WMRC to create a tailor-made program.

“Minimum inputs at the ticketing stage allow for fast processing of customers,” he says.

“We also achieved two clear goals with the introduction of the new system: a vast array of up-todate reporting available to multiple stakeholders, and most importantly, a vastly improved invoicing process.

“I look forward to seeing Mandalay’s further innovations.”

In addition to the product itself, Swift notes that the service from Mandalay “was second to none.”

“From our first contact with the Mandalay team it was clear that they were a forward-thinking company who had a genuine interest in the WMRC not only becoming a customer, but also in wanting to add tangible value to the business,” he says.

Swift adds that the WMRC team

spoke with Mandalay CEO Simon Kalinowski on more than one occasion, with him succinctly setting out what the Mandalay product could offer WMRC today and into the future.

“Mandalay have a broad spectrum of experience in the waste industry and are not afraid to share those learnings with their customers,” he says.

“We set the team at Mandalay an almost impossible task, with procurement of the product only finalising five weeks before the end of the financial year.

“Obviously, we were very keen to have the new system live by July 1st and Mandalay made that happen.”

With Mandalay’s weighbridge system now live, Swift says WMRC are steadily increasing the range and reach of its services.

Recent examples include WMRC’s new construction and demolition waste recycling service, and its pre-booked bulk waste verge collection service known as Verge Valet.

“We are constantly looking to improve the standards of our customer service, lift our recycling rates and provide better value for money for our member councils and other customers,” Swift says.

He adds that WMRC is busily preparing for the availability of wasteto-energy services as an option for residual residential waste disposal.

Two major waste-to-energy plants are currently under construction in Perth, with the first due for completion in 12 months.

“We’re currently evaluating tenders for the receipt of our residual waste for energy recovery purposes from 1 July 2022,” Swift says.

“We expect to be well positioned to take advantage of this exciting new technology, and to be able to offer a waste-to-energy transfer service to both existing and future customers,” Swift says.

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WASTE MANAGEMENT IN ACTION – SUSTAINABILITY

Driving the circular resource chain WASTE MANAGEMENT REVIEW SPEAKS WITH CATERPILLAR’S CHAMINDA SENANAYAKE AND CHARLES FARRUGIA ABOUT THE PAIR’S PIONEERING SUITE OF SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVES.

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n its 2019 Sustainability Report, Caterpillar outlined a target to reduce water consumption intensity by 50 per cent from 2006 levels. While the target applies to the machinery giant’s global operations, Caterpillar’s Melbourne, Tullamarine facility is playing a critical role.

Through an upgrade program spearheaded by Facility Engineer and Environmental Coordinator Chaminda Senanayake last year, Tullamarine’s reliance on mains water has dropped significantly.

The project involved replacing the facility’s underground piping system and installing rainwater tanks, and as a result, 22 per cent of Tullamarine’s

water usage now comes from rainwater.

When Senanayake started at Tullamarine 14 years ago, he says there were no tanks and no water harvesting. Now, the facility has an onsite water capacity of 615,000 litres.

Senanayake outlined this and other sustainability initiatives when he and Caterpillar’s Facilities Manager Charles Farrugia sat down with Waste Management Review earlier this year.

Farrugia explains that for many years, Caterpillar’s Tullamarine facility had issues with water leaks. While water wastage was a key concern, mains water supply breakdowns also created productivity issues, with

Charles Farrugia and Chaminda Senanayake are spearheading a multipronged approach to onsite sustainability at Caterpillar’s Tullamarine facility.

40 / WMR / December 2020

segments of the facility needing to be shut down to repair the system.

“To address that, Senanayake initiated the mains water upgrade project, and while yes, we spent a lot of money, we now have operational reliability and are further contributing to the facility’s overall sustainability,” Farrugia says.

Farrugia and Senanayake’s sustainability program extends far beyond water, with key consideration given to every element of the resource chain. They recently did away with under desk bins, for example, installing centralised waste and recycling hubs throughout the facility.

Tullamarine has over 150 desks, with each under desk bin changed daily prior to the change.

“Sometimes there’s just a coffee cup in the bin but it gets changed every day, so that’s unnecessary waste,” Senanayake explains.

The change was effectively made overnight, and while there was some initial resistance, Senanayake says the program was successful, with Caterpillar teams in Singapore and the United States seeking guidance on how Tullamarine achieved rapid behavioural change. As a result of this and other projects, Caterpillar’s Tullamarine facility recycled 1633 million tonnes of waste in 2019, which equated to 91 per cent of waste generated at the site.

Additionally, when Caterpillar ungraded its pump house in 2019, every bit of steel was recycled.

Senanayake says this resulted in 4.9 tonnes of steel diverted from landfill.

Tullamarine also operates mobile phone, battery and coffee pod recycling drop off points, with grinds from coffee machines taken to the facility’s community garden for composting.

“Our cafeteria staff also take all the vegetable shavings and food waste to the chock shed, so it gets reused and doesn’t contribute to our waste,” Senanayake says.

Another key project was the installation of LED lights across the facility, which cut electricity costs in half over 18 months. Tullamarine also installed a five-kilowatt solar panel two years ago, generating 7.1 megawatt hours of electricity in 2019.

While as with any business Caterpillar’s environmental programs need to be economically sustainable, Farrugia says that it’s not all about the dollars and cents for Caterpillar.

“When we launch a new project we have to engage with every stakeholder, but we’re not under pressure to just show the numbers or the return on investment. We also need to show how the project can improve the environment and the world we live in,” he says.

According to Farrugia, he and Senanayake’s recent initiatives have also produced positive educational and social outcomes.

“There’s been many times where we’ve implemented an initiative here, and someone’s gone home and initiated something similar elsewhere in their lives,” he says.

“Teaching people about recycling and

sustainability is very important to us.”

Looking forward, Farrugia says he is excited by rapid technological development in the smart office space.

He explains that on a trip to Singapore last year, he visited a facility that had an interactive smart office touch screen monitor.

“The operator pulled up an office layer and we could see four people in an office and how much energy they were consuming,” Farrugia says.

“The operator could then use that information and understand that if those four people had booked a smaller office they would have consumed less energy. There’s great technology out there that can help us better manage our facilities and understand how behaviour is impacting the way we’re running our offices, so we’re going to be looking at that technology in the future.”

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WASTE MANAGEMENT IN ACTION – PRODUCT STEWARDSHIP

A carbon neutral first

BY GAINING CLIMATE ACTIVE ACCREDITATION, MOBILEMUSTER HAS DISTINGUISHED ITSELF AS AUSTRALIA’S FIRST CARBON NEUTRAL PRODUCT STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM.

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ccording to the Federal Government’s most recent State of the Environment report, Australia’s carbon emissions are some of the most intense in the world. Emissions intensity is measured in two ways, first via a comparison of emissions level and population. And second, by comparing emission levels per dollar of gross domestic product.

Despite its still relatively high emissions ranking, the report notes that Australia’s emissions per person have dropped by 27 per cent since 1990.

Much of this decrease is attributed to a reduction in the proportion of electricity generated from coal. That said, one cannot underestimate the effects of growing consumer awareness and the development of industry accountability mechanisms.

Sitting at the intersection of these two drivers is MobileMuster, who’s zero-carbon approach is motivated by a desire to encourage people to take action, while simultaneously ensuring its own operations reflect its role within the product stewardship ecosystem.

In November, the program achieved Climate Active certification, meaning that when Australians recycle with MobileMuster it is now 100 per cent carbon neutral.

“MobileMuster is committed to reducing our carbon emissions and where necessary, offsetting all the emissions associated with the product

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MobileMuster has purchased carbon offsets to take responsibility for the unavoidable emissions it produces.

stewardship program. It means that all our operations will have zero carbon impact,” Spyro Kalos, Head of MobileMuster says.

“It’s great to be recognised as a leader in our industry and be the first product stewardship program in Australia to achieve certification under Climate Active.”

Climate Active is the new iteration of the Federal Government’s carbon neutral certification, which better reflects the role that government, business and community play in working together to address climate change.

Achieving certification was not an easy process, Kalos explains. He adds that it involved in-depth analysis of MobileMuster’s entire operations, from

advertising and the logistics of moving products, right through to the material it uses to manufacture satchels and collection infrastructure.

The analysis was undertaken independently though Lifecycles, taking approximately six weeks from start to finish.

“The great thing about that is it allows us to really analyse what we are doing,” Kalos says.

“Traditionally in Australia, product stewardship has been about collecting and recycling, and we need to be doing more.

“It’s exciting for us to really understand where we can make a difference in our operations to offset carbon.”

Kalos notes that MobileMuster’s

satchels are now made from 80 per cent recycled content, with green energy used to power the program’s office.

“The next phase for us is how we can manufacture our collection units using recycled content,” he says.

To take responsibility for the unavoidable emissions it produces, MobileMuster has purchased carbon offsets – investing in a conservation project in South Australia and a wind power project in Taiwan.

The Mount Sandy Conservation Australia project protects one of the last pockets of bush and wetlands in the region. Located between Coorong National Park and Lake Albert in South Australia, the project brings non-Indigenous and Indigenous Australians together by promoting land conservation using methods that have been employed by Traditional

Custodians, the Ngarrindjeri people.

The project not only has significant climate benefits, but will deliver revegetation of the area to support local birds, animals and plants to flourish.

Looking globally, the Taiwan wind power project generates renewable energy, through the Changbin and Taichung wind farms, to power local homes, while helping to expand the country’s sustainable energy industry.

In addition to contributing to emission reductions, the project delivers economic, social and environmental outcomes that help preserve the local ecosystem and encourage biodiversity.

According to Kalos, the mobile telecommunications industry is committed to building a sustainable, low-carbon future by taking responsibility for reducing carbon emissions and the impact of their

products throughout the life cycle.

He explains that the way Australian’s use and dispose of mobile phones contributes to their environmental footprint and the emissions associated with making products.

“In our efforts to combat climate change, MobileMuster recognises that we need to look at a circular economy approach to reduce our carbon emissions,” Kalos says.

He adds that this is something MobileMuster is committed to for the long term.

“We will continue to look at further reducing our carbon footprint by using recycled content in our collection infrastructure, moving to 100 per cent recycled content in all of our collateral and also working with partners and suppliers that are equality committed to reducing their carbon footprint.”

WASTE MANAGEMENT IN ACTION – PROCUREMENT

Accelerated procurement FOR COAG’S EXPORT BANS TO BE A SUCCESS, HARMONISATION OF AUSTRALIA’S REGULATORY FRAMEWORK IS KEY. JIM FAIRWEATHER, RESOURCECO CEO, EXPLAINS.

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s a global leader in the recovery and re-manufacturing of primary resources, ResourceCo is encouraging governments to be bold in embracing harmonisation of policy and procurement targets to ensure the success of COAG’s upcoming export bans. The first of the bans is set to come into effect 1 January 2021, starting with unprocessed glass, and then followed by mixed plastics, whole used tyres, single resin polymer plastics and finishing with mixed and unsorted paper and cardboard in July 2024.

The waste and resource recovery industry has strongly argued the bans, while welcomed, won’t work on their own and that genuine market development and product stewardship is required. Speaking at the Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association of Australia’s (WMRR) recent Buy Recycled Expo SA, Jim Fairweather, ResourceCo CEO, said harmonisation of the regulatory framework around Australia is key to ensuring the bans success.

“If we want to create a genuine national market for recycled materials, we need to get much closer to achieving consistency in policy settings across states for the long term,” he said.

“There also needs to be surety of the waste levy structures to drive confidence in investment decisions.”

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At WMRR’s Buy Recycled Expo, Jim Fairweather said there is an opportunity for all governments to bring the use of recycled content forward.

Fairweather added that the resource recovery sector could play a significant role, post COVID-19, in helping to stimulate the economy through local processing and remanufacturing, but that requires a modern regulatory framework.

“There is a genuine opportunity to create end markets for Australian recycled materials if governments commit to mandating the procurement of those materials across all government projects,” he said.

“Sustainable government procurement will be the key driver of the industry. That is the biggest thing.

In the short term, government should look at individual projects and the inclusion of recycled resources and grow from there.”

Fairweather accepted that the sector

also had its role to play in increasing awareness of innovation and the quality of products already available.

“The recycling industry has been exceptionally good at getting things done. What we have been poor at is creating the right awareness and understanding of what we do. There is much to be done in this space,” he said.

WMRR, a peak national body for the $15 billion waste and resource recovery industry, focused its inaugural Buy Recycled Expo SA on demystifying the industry, creating awareness and highlighting the real challenges.

“South Australia has long been a leader in many areas of recycling, resource recovery and waste management. It’s motivated and nimble

enough to make big changes and decisions quickly to ensure success,” Gayle Sloan, WMRR CEO said.

“As an industry we need have a common narrative about the value we create and the planet we are saving.

Having a value conversation about what we do is important. It’s about providing an essential service to the community, while delivering better environmental outcomes, creating Australian jobs and sustaining local economies.”

The Federal Government recently reaffirmed its commitment to growing the domestic waste and resource recovery industry with $249 million committed over four years to modernising Australia’s recycling infrastructure. However, while much has been said about updating procurement rules to enable public servants to more easily identify, select

Jim Fairweather said there needs to be surety of waste levy structures to drive confidence in investment decisions.

and decide on procurements that use recycled content materials going forward, the detail is yet to be landed.

“Given the post COVID focus on infrastructure projects, there is an opportunity for all governments to bring forward the use of more recycled content in an accelerated

effort to ensure sustainable procurement,” Fairweather said.

Sloan agreed that time is of the essence in developing frameworks that will support the establishment of viable onshore reprocessing, remanufacturing and end markets for recycled products.

VOLVO CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT

YOUR PARTNERS IN Volvo has over 25 years experience in waste handling and offers a wide range of purpose-built machines; all designed to meet high industry demands for safety, dependability and cost efficiency. If you’re looking for a fuel efficient and productive machine, look no further than Volvo’s EC250E excavator.

Volvo now offers an optional and unique air compressor system. The air compressor with air blower, fitted in the cab for easy access, is a powerful tool and can be used to clean the cab whenever necessary.

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BIG ENOUGH TO TRUST SMALL ENOUGH TO CARE www.cjd.com.au | 1300 139 804 | enquiries@cjd.com.au Facebook.com/cjdequipment

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WASTE MANAGEMENT IN ACTION – MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE

HYVA’s Mega 20 cubic metre rear loaders are helping SUEZ deliver a reliable and essential service to its customers.

The fundamental tool SUEZ’S SEAN WILLIAMS HIGHLIGHTS THE IMPORTANCE OF INNOVATIVE REAR LOADERS TO ENSURE OPERATION SUCCESS AND SAFETY.

C

lose to 739,600 tonnes of domestic waste and recycling was collected from western Sydney households in 2015-16 through kerbside bin services, kerbside bulky waste collections and council drop-off and mobile services. Just over half of this waste was diverted from landfill and recovered, with the region achieving an overall domestic recycling rate of 54 per cent, which is higher than the NSW recycling rate of 47.5 per cent.

Sean Williams, SUEZ Recycling and Recovery Australia Collections North

46 / WMR / December 2020

and West Manager, says residential waste has never been more in the spotlight.

“Commercial is mainly recycling waste and with more people at home and working from home during this time, in residential settings we are operating more loads and can do three loads in a pinch for new developments that could have hundreds of units on one site in western Sydney,” he says.

Smart collection is a fundamental part of today’s waste management and

resource recovery processes.

Williams highlights that residential waste management works machinery to its full capacity.

“Though all communities are unique, local government authorities face common challenges in the optimal management of waste,” he says.

“At SUEZ, we leverage our substantial expertise and new technologies to provide smarter, more sustainable collection services.”

In April this year, Williams says his department was delighted to trial

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HYVA’s 20 cubic metre rear loaders to test the model under daily operations.

“The first thing I noticed was the ease of the truck and the commitment to safety compared to competitors,” he says.

HYVA’s Mega 20 cubic metre rear loaders, which are constructed from high tensile steels and wearable steel in abrasive exposed areas, are extremely durable with a long operating life.

Williams says despite the technical elements that ensure its sturdy structure, it’s a very easy truck to operate.

“A point of difference we really noticed was the ease for the operators at the back. Loading can be done manually, by hydraulic bin lift or by skip lifter. The RCBs can be manually or electrically operated,” he says.

Williams highlights the importance of rear loaders for SUEZ Recycling & Recovery Australia.

“Our residents across the region rely on us every day.

By building strong partnerships and taking the time to understand the needs of our customers, SUEZ creates tailored and cost-effective solutions for the reliable and safe delivery of essential services,” he says.

“This is why undergoing a trial and testing the reliability and efficiency of the HYVA 20 cubic metre rear loaders was important to us.”

Williams says during the trial phase his team noticed the high collection efficiency from small diameter cylinders, which deliver faster operation and double pump for simultaneous operation of packers and bin lifters.

“The design, clean appearance and automated sensors were added benefits that operators noted too,” he says.

Williams has been in waste management for 30 years and has seen dramatic improvements in rear loaders.

“We used to operate everything with levers, to now push-button automated systems. It’s incredible to see the innovation come to life,” he says.

However, the most important feature is safety, and Williams says a lighter truck that doesn’t require a worker attending on the outside of the vehicle is enabling fast operations.

“The HYVA rear loader has a hydraulic system with the over centre valve and electrical dump valve giving protection to operators. This is a massive improvement to the weight and safety of the truck and our operators,” Williams says.

“We want to pack and carry more and it’s through innovative trucks like the HYVA rear loader that we can enhance our purpose and commitment to the community.

“Ultimately, a high performing truck that guarantees speed, safety and efficiency like the HYVA rear loader is a beacon of light for operators and our business.

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RULES AND REGULATION

Collaborating for compliance NEGLIGENT REGULATIONS NEED TO BE ADDRESSED TO STOP UNSCRUPULOUS OPERATORS. TYRE STEWARDSHIP AUSTRALIA CEO LINA GOODMAN EXPLAINS.

S

uggestions that shortcomings of the Tyre Product Stewardship Scheme were resulting in the potentially hazardous stockpiling of tyres in Queensland were misinformed and “simply nonsense,” according to Tyre Stewardship Australia (TSA) CEO Lina Goodman.

Responding to the recent public exposure of a tyre stockpile in Brisbane, Goodman attributed the negligent change of storage regulations during the former Queensland Premier Campbell Newman Government’s tenure as the reason for the stockpiling.

In September this year, Assistant Waste Reduction and Environmental Management Minister Trevor Evans described the stockpile as a “ticking time bomb” and called on the Queensland Government to shut it down.

“My understanding is that absolutely nothing has happened on this site or to the people involved for at least the last year, and that’s completely unacceptable,” Evans said.

“It should be priority number one for the Queensland Environment Department and the State Government to get in and shut it down immediately.”

Goodman acknowledges that the economic impact of COVID-19 on the Australian economy had led to an

48 / WMR / December 2020

increase in collection pitfalls.

“Unscrupulous operators are always emerging in aspects of the waste industry, offering cheaper prices with no care for how they dispose of the waste, nor the environmental nor human health impacts,” Goodman says.

“We are at a critical juncture in terms of Australians taking responsibility for our own waste and using this resource to instead create jobs, spark innovation and deliver strong environmental outcomes.

“We need tyre retailers to be more vigilant than ever on who they choose to work with and how their end-oflife tyres are being managed.”

Goodman’s sentiments are mirrored by multiple waste industry stakeholders, with Waste Recycling Industry Queensland CEO Mark Smith highlighting that the stockpile not only posed a potential fire risk, but undermined the integrity of good operators who make up the bulk of the sector. TSA and Waste Recycling Industry Queensland are now working on a project to examine the scale of unlicenced activity within the scrap metal industry.

Goodman stresses, however, that the time for finger-pointing and laying blame is over.

“With the Council of Australian Governments’ waste export ban on whole used tyres coming into effect

next year, now is the time for a more unified approach to the nation’s waste challenge – not division,” she says.

Goodman does acknowledge that as a voluntary organisation, TSA faces challenges.

“TSA remains exposed to freeriders and external forces that undermine our objectives and those of the scheme and the Product Stewardship Act,” she says.

“But that is not to say TSA is just sitting on its hands.

“We are working tirelessly to ensure the effectiveness of our accreditation and compliance program to verify the end uses of end-of-life tyres both domestically and internationally.”

TSA is collaborating with national regulators on an operational level regarding compliance issues and contributing to legislative changes and updates, Goodman explains.

She adds that TSA is well placed to communicate proposed or new legislative updates to its 1700 participants.

“We also escalate awareness of unscrupulous operators to our participants and warn of the dangers of engaging with non-TSA accredited organisations,” Goodman says.

“We established an Industry Consultative Group, engaging stakeholders from all aspects of the tyre industry to work collaboratively on the issues, challenges and solutions

Lina Goodman says Tyre Stewardship Australia is collaborating with national regulators on an operational level regarding compliance issues and legislative changes.

“We are working tirelessly to ensure the effectiveness of our accreditation and compliance program to verify the end uses of end-of-life tyres both domestically and internationally.”

Tyre Stewardship Australia CEO Lina Goodman

for our industry.”

Furthermore, TSA has invested nearly $6 million in innovative market development research and demonstration projects that utilise Australian tyre derived products.

“We are now starting to see the positive tangible outcomes from these

investments and the increased use of crumb rubber in a multitude of sectors and applications, in particular the road sector,” Goodman says.

“It is clear however that TSA, like other product stewardship organisations and waste and recycling associations, does not have the

power to shut down organisations that stockpile. This lies solely with government regulation and enforcement.”

To address this, Goodman says a collaborative approach is needed, whereby regulators, governments, industry associations and retailers work together to tackle the environmental and health challenges created by mismanagement of end-oflife tyres.

“Moving the tyre stewardship scheme to a co-regulatory or mandatory approach under the Act will ensure greater economywide participation, increased local recovery and recycling and market development opportunities that encourage investment within Australia,” she says.

www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 49

EVENTS

Plotting a circular pathway THIS YEAR’S AWRE IS PROVIDING A PLATFORM TO CONNECT INDUSTRY STAKEHOLDERS, ISSUES AND POLICY, AS THE WASTE AND RESOURCE RECOVERY SECTOR GEARS UP FOR AN INVESTMENT DRIVEN 2021.

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t this year’s Australasian Waste and Recycling Expo (AWRE) online event, Kathy Giunta, NSW EPA Circular Economy Programs Director, is showcasing a range of circular economy initiatives, ranging from local community projects to whole of state programs, proudly supported by the NSW EPA. “These innovative, successful and replicable projects demonstrate how EPA grants are helping organisations to adapt their processes and become a sustainable business, whilst improving productivity and moving towards a circular economy,” she says.

Giunta explains that the NSW EPA is proud to continue its decadelong partnership with AWRE, as the important event brings together industry stakeholders to share ideas and encourage innovation for circular economy technologies.

“With the challenges of the past year, it’s more important than ever that the EPA is out there showing our commitment to supporting sustainable waste practices,” she says.

“We want to keep building a strong circular economy in NSW and we value the fact that AWRE shares that commitment.”

Similarly, Mike Ritchie, MRA Consulting Group Managing Director and this year’s host, says AWRE provides a great platform to connect

50 / WMR / December 2020

Kathy Giunta says the NSW EPA is proud to continue its decade-long partnership with AWRE.

industry stakeholders, issues and policy.

“As a waste and recycling consultant, I live for the opportunity to meet with the industry, government and stakeholders about the big policy issues of how to create a circular economy and how to put the Australian economy on a more sustainable footing. When AWRE approached me to host, I had no hesitation,” he says.

According to Ritchie, while Australia has a long way to go to achieve an 80 per cent diversion from landfill target by 2030, AWRE will help plot the pathway.

“With high profile speakers and industry experts, AWRE will deliver key learnings on policy, programs and successful initiatives in recycling,

circular economy, landfill management, WtE and how to build an integrated waste management system,” he says.

In addition to his hosting role, Richie will open day two of the expo with a discussion of the Recycling Modernisation Fund with Environment Minister Sussan Ley and National Waste and Recycling Industry Council CEO Rose Read.

“This is $190 million of federal funding to be matched by the states and project proponents to drive the renaissance in secondary reprocessing of recyclables here in Australia,” Ritchie says.

Sponsored by Steinert Australia, the forum will see Ley provide an update on the fund, as well as the Federal Government’s wider recycling initiatives.

“We’ve done a lot in a short period of time, but we have a lot more to do. I think participants will be interested to hear what’s next on the government’s agenda,” Ley says.

“This is an exciting industry to be in right now. I see an industry that is really redefining its approach to waste, recycling and remanufacturing in Australia. Undoubtedly there are still structural barriers to overcome – it’s a complex sector – but I hear a lot of optimism when I speak to industry, especially with all governments investing in real change.”

The Recycling Modernisation Fund is set to transform Australia’s waste and recycling industry.

According to Ley, the Recycling Modernisation Fund will work to create more than 10,000 jobs and divert over 10 million tonnes of waste from landfill for reuse into making products, packaging and infrastructure.

It is key, she adds, to support innovative investment in new infrastructure to sort, process and re-manufacture materials such as mixed plastic, paper, tyres and glass, with federal funding contingent on co-funding from industry, states and territories.

“I’m really excited to participate in this year’s AWRE event,” Ley says.

“Since the Prime Minister first announced the waste export ban in August last year, we’ve worked hard on putting the framework and investment in place to transform Australia’s waste and recycling industry.”

Ley adds that the Federal Government expects that the Recycling and Waste Reduction Act will pass the

Senate with bipartisan support – “and this is world leading legislation in terms of our approach to banning the export of waste.”

“We’ve nominated recycling as one of our six national manufacturing priorities backed by unprecedented Commonwealth investment via the Recycling Modernisation Fund and the Manufacturing Modernisation Fund,” Ley says.

“And we’ve really engaged with the industry to think about solutions, like bringing together all parts of the plastics supply chain at the first National Plastics Summit to tackle issues around plastics waste.”

Furthermore, Ley says she is convinced Australia will soon start seeing better environmental outcomes by realising the value of its waste.

“This is what Australians, i.e. your consumers and our constituents, are demanding,” she says.

For more information go to www.awre.com.au.

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PRODUCT SHOWCASE

JCB’S HYDROGEN POWERED EXCAVATOR JCB has developed the waste industry’s first ever hydrogen powered excavator, as it continues to lead the sector on zero and low carbon technologies.

The 20-tonne 220X excavator powered by a hydrogen fuel cell has been undergoing rigorous testing at JCB’s quarry proving grounds for more than 12 months. The exciting development means JCB is the first construction equipment company in the world to unveil a working prototype of an excavator powered by hydrogen.

Power for JCB’s prototype excavator is generated by reacting hydrogen with oxygen in a fuel cell to create the energy needed to run electric motors. The only emission from the exhaust is water.

The excavator has a maximum backet capacity of 1.25 metres cubed, with a maximum operating weight of 24,743 kilograms.

Customisable proportional controls allow operators to set their preference of speed and control of attachments, while the new dozer option adds extra versatility.

The boom float feature allows for smooth grading along hard surfaces and improves breaker efficiency by applying the correct amount of pressure.

Perfect for tough conditions, the power boost button

The 20-tonne 220X excavator is powered by a hydrogen fuel cell.

increases pressure by 10 per cent for up to nine seconds for extra tear out.

A powerful new HVAC with 11 targeted vents provides optimum performance in hot and cold environments and the cool/heat box comes as standard.

Contact – JCB CEA P 1300 522 232 W www.jcbcea.com.au

HYVA’S R-LINE REFUSE COLLECTION RANGE Constructed with high tensile and wearable steel in abrasive exposed areas, Hyva’s range of R-Line refuse collection bodies are extremely durable with a long operating life.

Environmental credentials are strong as well, with complete rubber seals in the tailgate area, sewage collection and drainage at the base of the body. The range comprises two variants, with body volumes of six and eight cubic metres.

The universal bin-lifter ranges from 120 to 1100 litres and the Rear loader operates either manually with levers or by electrical controls. Higher payloads are achieved through high compaction force and lightweight body design.

Safety is further enhanced via a hydraulic system with over-centre valve and electrical dump value to facilitate operator protection.

The unit’s state-of-the-art design and clean appearance is improved through covers that conceal cylinders and hoses.

As an option, an electronically driven, plasticised canvas shutter-plate can be added to the door to close off the loading area.

The unit’s state-of-the-art design and clean appearance is improved through covers that conceal cylinders and hoses.

Contact - Hyva Pacific E enquiries@hyva.com W www.hyva.com

www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 53

PRODUCT SHOWCASE – MATERIAL HANDLERS

The machine enabling green PUREARTH IS WORKING TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEM OF GREEN WASTE BY PROVIDING ORGANIC SOLUTIONS WITH THE AID OF ITS EFFICIENT FLEET OF VOLVO MACHINES.

“T

he problem of green waste has always been there, but with state policy focused on removing organics from landfill, it’s never been more important to process food and organics into a solution,” Paul Curtis, Director of Purearth says.

Local governments are increasingly recognising the benefits of moving to a FOGO collection system.

Purearth introduced Volvo machinery to its site 14 years ago.

54 / WMR / December 2020

According to last year’s Western Australian Waste Authority Annual Report, a consistent three-bin kerbside collection system, which includes separation of FOGO from other waste categories, is to be provided by all local governments in the Perth and Peel region by 2025. Curtis says this commitment will increase the attention of turning the problem

of organic waste into a solution, by creating valuable nutrient-rich, compost and fertiliser. Along with his brother Sean, Curtis was ahead of the pack and developed Purearth’s operation in Perth over 20 years ago.

“We were born with soil under our fingernails. As kids, we worked with mum and dad in the family landscaping supply business and now

Purearth relies on its fleet of Volvo wheel loaders from CJD Equipment to produce soil mixes, composts and mulches.

run both Purearth organic compost and Little Loads landscaping and garden supplies,” he says.

The goal of Purearth is to improve the earth by returning goodness back to the soil. Purearth organic compost is made from a special mix of green waste and both liquid and solid organic waste.

“We have a number of government contracts and supply this compost to soil yards and landscaping businesses, orchards and farms all over regional and metro areas of Western Australia.

Organic is something we all produce.

Purearth collect it and give it a new lease of life as high-quality plant food. The process also unlocks carbon in the soil, meaning we can give future generations a more stable environment,” Curtis says.

Through the process of producing soil mixes, composts and mulches for everyone, from the backyard gardener to the professional landscaper, Purearth relies on its fleet of high-powered Volvo wheel loaders from CJD Equipment to consistently make, deliver and apply a high-quality product for both its suppliers and customers.

Purearth currently operates six

Volvo wheel loaders at its Perth site.

“They are used all day, every day from handling, preparation, to transfer. They are a vital asset to our daily operation,” Curtis says.

Fourteen years ago, Purearth first introduced the machinery to its site and since then, Curtis says he is constantly satisfied with the level of efficiency the Volvo loaders provide.

“They continually perform and outweigh the benefits over other brands. We are able to focus on our business and our purpose rather than maintenance or machinery worries.”

Curtis says the company purchased the loaders from CJD Equipment, an Australian owned distributor of construction equipment and trucks for a variety of manufacturing and waste disposal industries. He highlights CJD’s product portfolio with Volvo, which has continually added value to the Perth based operation.

“CJD has been great to work with, not just with supplying the loaders, but also with servicing and after-sales support,” he says.

According to Curtis, owning a Volvo means peace of mind.

“The low fuel consumption is highly

impressive, and all our staff appreciate the ease and performance of our fleet, not to mention the powerful aircon that makes their job enjoyable in sweltering Perth heat,” he says.

“Less downtime for service and more uptime for productive work.

That’s how easy it is to summarise the advantages.”

There are currently plans to build Purearth’s fleet of H series Volvo wheel loaders.

“We have two H series Volvo wheel loaders and look forward to adding more current H series models to our family, as they are one of the marker’s cleanest and most reliable loaders.”

Curtis says it’s important that the machinery and partnerships they create meet the company’s environmental purpose and values.

“Our product and service is of the highest quality and we’re proud CJD and our Volvo wheel loaders contribute to our operation’s purpose to rejuvenate and help foster environmental balance.”

Contact - CJD Equipment P 08 9478 0000 E enquiries@cjd.com.au W https://www.cjd.com.au/

www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 55

PRODUCT SHOWCASE – BALERS AND COMPACTORS

Baling cardboard and RDF efficiently WITH THE MAC 108 FROM MACPRESSE, DOYLE BROS IS EFFICIENTLY BALING COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL WASTE AT ITS SYDNEY MATERIALS RECOVERY FACILITY.

The MAC 108 can process 16 tonnes of cardboard and 30 tonnes of RDF every hour.

D

oyle Bros is a family-owned Sydney-based waste and recycling company that has been servicing the city’s commercial and industrial sector since 1989.

The company has over 30 years of experience and is committed to preserving the environment through efficient recycling.

Since 2009, Doyle Bros has been diverting material from landfill into their materials recovery facility (MRF) to recycle old corrugated cardboard (OCC) and refuse derived fuel (RDF).

56 / WMR / December 2020

RDF is an especially valuable recycling product in Doyle Bros’ environmentally responsible approach to managing waste.

Non-recyclable residuals, waste that would otherwise be destined for landfill, is turned into efficient fuel. It has a lower-emission rate than coal and reduces harmful landfill emissions.

To process both incoming waste streams, Doyle Bros uses state-of-theart European sorting and separation technology. An integral part of Doyle Bros’ recycling process is the MAC

108 baler from the Italian company Macpresse.

Macpresse is one of the world’s leading companies in the field of plants for waste and recyclables treatment.

The company was set up in 1875 and has over 50 years of experience in the production of high-volume baling presses.

Over 1500 of their balers are installed worldwide and Macpresse is present with service centres in over 60 countries. CEMAC technologies is the distributor for Australia and New

Zealand and supports local installations with service and local spare stock holding.

Paul Doyle, Managing Director of Doyle Bros, bought the MAC 108 three years ago after a visit to the factory south of Milan, where all Macpresse machines are designed and manufactured. He was impressed with the expertise and experience of Macpresse.

“Clearly they have been in business for a very long period,” he says.

After having used the MAC 108 for three years now, Doyle points out the machine’s reliability.

“It’s a strong and solid thing that you can count on,” he explains.

Since he put the machine into operation, Doyle has experienced no downtime. He adds that he maintains it with a simple maintenance routine suggested by Macpresse and ever since the start “it just keeps going.”

To ensure the sturdiness of all Macpresse machines, HARDOX 450 steel liners are fixed to the structure of the frame with a patented bolted application system. This wearresistant material protects the balers from abrasion and corrosion, with replacement liners on the floor, sidewalls and top of the extrusion chamber.

HARDOX steel is 400 per cent longer lasting than normal steel and is resistant to wear and chemical agents. It can be rapidly replaced, thereby minimising baler downtime while increasing the overall lifetime of the machine.

Another feature that improves the lifetime of the MAC 108 are the blades that are used to cut off excess material in the hopper.

These are tempered blades specially designed by Macpresse to guarantee a greater resistance to wear. Besides the sturdiness of the MAC 108, Doyle enjoys the machine’s ability to bale two different products. Doyle Bros bales

both OCC and RDF “in different shifts and it handles it.”

Due to the input material which is “very light and fluffy”, Doyle also points out the machine’s high processing volume.

“Put all the material into the Macpresse and you compact it into these one metre squared bales,” he says.

The MAC 108 can process 16 tonnes of cardboard and 30 tonnes of RDF an hour, and has been specially designed for compacting medium and large

between plastic or steel wires.

Additionally, Macpresse offers the option of a mobile tying unit for all their balers. This unit rotates 90 degrees away from the balers frame and returns into position only during the tying and cutting cycle. This allows for even simpler cleaning and maintenance.

The MAC 108 also has notably low energy consumption, mainly due to the hydraulic system, which is comprised of a high-efficiency IE3 motor and a Rexroth variable flow piston pump.

To process incoming waste streams, Doyle Bros uses stateof-the-art European sorting and separation technology.

quantities of materials.

Macpresse offers a wide range of different balers, from the small-sized MAC 102 to medium-sized balers such as the MAC 108, until large-sized balers like the MAC 112 XL. Due to the variety of machines, Macpresse balers are suitable for a wide range of plants from smaller supermarkets to larger sites such as landfills and transfer stations.

Macpresse balers are renowned for one of the most reliable tying unit in the industry. By tying all wires simultaneously, the tying time for each bale is reduced significantly. The operator also has the option to choose

This motor allows for energy savings of 30 per cent compared with traditional motors, with the variable flow piston pump further reducing electrical consumption while also allowing the hydraulic pressure to be regulated on demand.

With Macpresse’s MAC 108, Doyle Bros can reliably and efficiently bale recyclable material. Both input streams, OCC and RDF, can then be processed further in an environmentally responsible way.

Contact - CEMAC Technologies P (03) 8400 6066 E info@cemactech.com W www.cemactech.com

www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 57

PRODUCT SHOWCASE – BALERS AND COMPACTORS XXX

Boosting bales with the Badger MOREE PLAINS SHIRE COUNCIL’S MARK JOHNS EXPLAINS HOW WASTEDRIVE’S HARRIS BADGER BALER IS FACILITATING OPERATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY AND EFFECTIVE RESOURCE RECOVERY IN THE REGION.

W

ith a gross regional product of more than $750 million, Moree Plains Shire is one of the most agriculturally productive local government areas in Australia.

Large scale cereal crops and cotton provide export industries for the region, while sheep, cattle, oil seeds, olives and pecan nuts contribute significantly to the local and national economy.

To protect its natural environment, More Plains Shire Council takes

a proactive approach to waste management – operating 10 waste and recycling facilities across NSW’s North West Slopes region.

Council’s largest centre, the Moree Waste Management Facility, provides a range of services including general and green waste disposal, scrap metal and concrete recycling, a community recycling centre and a drumMUSTER compound.

Landfill Operator Mark Johns, who has been working with Moree

Plains Shire Council for over 15 years, says he and the wider waste team are committed to boosting the region’s resource recovery rates. An effective way to achieve that, he adds, is through community engagement and education.

While education takes many forms, Johns highlights the importance of seeing processes firsthand. He explains that council’s Harris Badger Baler, which is positioned in the middle of the Moree Waste Management Facility, gives residents a real time glimpse of

Using the Harris Badger Baler, Moree Plains Shire Council can bale a full truck load of waste in half an hour.

58 / WMR / December 2020

Moree Plains Shire Council’s Harris Badger Baler has facilitated an economical and efficient recovery process.

Wastedrive recently fitted the baler with a new head Accent 470 Wire Tie.

resource recovery in action.

“When the public drops off their waste they can see the baler running.

This is a great way to teach them about the waste and recycling process, and why it’s important to source separate their material,” he says.

Moree Plains Shire Council purchased the Badger from authorised Harris equipment distributor Wastedrive 10 years ago. In that time, Johns says he’s watched the baler accelerate a more streamlined, economical and efficient recovery process.

Before acquiring the Badger, Moree Plains operated a standard compactor.

While compaction rates were adequate, Johns says the process was relatively slow, with the added hindrance of fly away waste.

“When we introduced the Badger baler, it was unbelievable. We can bale a full truck load in half an hour,” he says.

With roughly three and half bales to a load, that equates to three tonnes baled every 30 minutes.

“There’s no way we could compact

the way this machine does,” Johns says.

The Badger is a narrow-box, two ram baler, which Johns explains provides quality, efficiency and reliability at an economical price.

The Badger’s uni-body construction design gives the baler the added strength and rigidity needed to handle difficult materials. Additionally, the baler’s widened stance works to minimise flexing during the baling cycle, while a laser position system for all ram and bale exit door movements provides reliable operations.

Suitable for processing a range of materials including solid waste, plastics, cans, white goods and cardboard, the baler comes equip with a smart knife system that works to eliminate downtime.

The Badger features a total control user interface terminal, which includes a multi-function touch screen display with up to the second diagnostic and production information.

Johns explains that the baler effectively runs itself, thereby producing a safer and cleaner working environment for his team.

“It’s really easy to operate and it’s great for the environment because the bales are so tight, which reduces space and also means blow away waste isn’t flying off everywhere,” he says.

“With the compactor, lose bits of waste would fly around, and this is a really windy area, so we’d have two or three people working all day to pick everything up.

“Since using the Badger baler we’ve saved all that time.”

According to Johns, Wastedrive recently fitted the baler with a new head Accent 470 Wire Tie, which has further improved the waste management facility’s operations due to the fully removable parts cartridge.

Established in 1995, Wastedrive is committed to not only providing high performance products, but considering all the details of a machine’s intended and future use. As such, Johns says the Wastedrive team are always on hand to assist with any maintenance or queries.

“We can ring them up at any time and ask questions, plus, they come out here every six months to service the machine and talk us through any new developments,” he says.

“They’re a great company to work with and are really good with backup.”

Contact - Wastedrive

P 0414 071 331 E info@wastedrive.com W https://wastedrive.com.au/

www.wastemanagementreview.com.au / WMR / 59

PRODUCT SHOWCASE

TEREX ECOTEC’S LATEST METAL SEPARATOR Environmental equipment specialist Terex Ecotec has added a new metal separator to its range – the TMS 320.

This latest addition to the Ecotec product range is a standout in mobile separation, offering operators application flexibility, production rates and serviceability.

A highly efficient drum magnet and eddy current rotor combined with superior material flow ensures accurate material separation.

The TMS 320 is ideally suited for metal recovery from compost, biomass, incinerated bottom ash and general waste.

The TMS 320 metal separator offers quick and easy set-up, and will be ready to process in minutes with no tools required.

An intuitive push button control panel, variable speed drum magnet and eddy current belt, combined with a splitter system that offers accurate real time adjustment, enables the operator to easily configure the machine to suit a wide range of applications.

In partnering with Eriez, a world authority in magnetic separation technologies, the TMS 320 incorporates the renowned RevX ST22 eddy current separator and rare earth drum magnet.

The TMS 320 is suited for metal recovery from compost, biomass, incinerated bottom ash and general waste.

The RevX ST22 eddy current separator has a premium 22-pole neodymium rotor which spins at just 3000 RPM. This rotor is encased in an ultra-thin carbon fibre shell and a thin but durable PVC belt, ensuring that the intense field produced by the ST22 is fully employed to provide the most effective separation results.

Contact - Terex

P 03 8794 4100 W www.terex.com/ecotec/en/

WASTECH ENGINEERING’S VERTICAL BALER RANGE Available in Australia exclusively through Wastech Engineering, Bramidan Balers are capable of compacting a range of materials including cardboard, plastic, e-waste and metals.

With a broad choice of baler models available, this compaction method is suited to businesses with a wide range of waste volumes, from small retail outlets to large scale waste transfer stations.

Available in six models, Wastech’s B-Series balers are easy-to-use and cost effective to operate – quickly and efficiently crushing a large range of cardboard boxes, paper and plastic products to produce neatly crushed bales ready for removal.

When space is at a premium, the B3 baler provides minimal footprint combined with a low height, while the similarly compact B4 provides the added benefit of a fourtonne press force.

On the larger end of the spectrum, the B30W Baler features an extra wide filling opening, making it easy for users to load bulky material for crushing.

The X-Series range is similarly efficient, with five models featuring cross cylinders that provide superior press force.

The X10 Baler offers big crushing power for its size, while the larger X50 offers heavy duty compaction combined with

60 / WMR / December 2020

Wastech’s B-Series balers are easy-to-use and cost effective to operate.

an easy-to-use interface.

X-Series balers also benefit from faster cycle times, while remaining compact in design and versatile enough to cater to a broad quantity of plastic and cardboard crushing.

The vertical baler range can service diverse industries ranging from supermarkets, warehousing and logistics, to manufacturing, healthcare and mining.

Wastech can facilitate flexible rental options, with delivery and service support available Australia wide.

Contact - Wastech Engineering P 1800 465 465 E info@wastech.com.au W www.wastech.com.au

LAST WORD

Looking ahead to 2021 IN THE WAKE OF COVID-19, THE WASTE AND RECYCLING INDUSTRY’S AGILITY AS AN ESSENTIAL SERVICE WAS EVIDENT. IT’S THIS AGILITY THAT WILL STAND THE INDUSTRY IN GOOD STEAD AS 2021 FAST APPROACHES, WRITES ROSE READ, NWRIC CEO.

W

hen the new year rang in on 1 January 2020, few could have predicated the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuring enormous economic and social impact. For many, 2020 has become the year we would rather forget. It’s been challenging for so many sectors, with uncertainty around job security, education, the economy, health and wellbeing.

While the waste and recycling sector has taken a hit in some areas due to declining volumes from commercial and industrial, and construction and demolition customers, household and organic collections have grown due to a much larger number of people working from home.

Fortunately, the momentum created by the Federal Government in 2019 to proactively tackle Australia’s waste and recycling issues has also been maintained, with COAG signing off on the waste export ban response strategy in March.

As a result, additional funding from the Federal Government has been committed, including the $190 million Recycling Modernisation Fund, $20 million to reduce plastic waste and boost plastics recycling through the Cooperative Research Centres Projects, $20 million in the Product Stewardship Investment

Rose Read says 2021 will be a foundational year for the waste and recycling sector.

Fund, $35 million to implement the National Waste Policy Action Plan and $26 million to nationalise waste data collection and reporting.

Legislative reforms through the new Recycling and Waste Reduction Bill 2020 are also being introduced to implement the waste export ban and recommendations from the Product Stewardship Review.

Further, the Federal Budget has identified recycling and clean energy as one of its six manufacturing priorities to stimulate the economy and employment as part of the COIVD-19 recovery plan. Through the Modern Manufacturing Strategy, $1.5 billion

has been allocated over five years to improve competitiveness, scale and resilience in Australian manufacturing.

Off the back of the government’s 2020 policy initiatives, funding allocations and legislative reforms, the scene has been set for the waste and recycling sector to look to 2021 as a foundation year to grow and develop its material and energy recovery infrastructure and capacity.

We know that every $100 million invested in productivity improvements in waste-related activities is estimated to generate an additional $350 million to Australia’s GDP and create 1670 jobs. With potentially up to $1 billion of new investment by industry and governments over the next four years generating a further $3.5 billion to Australia’s GDP and more than 16,000 jobs.

To achieve this development, NWRIC sees that in 2021 priority must be given to three things developing markets and recovering more materials, streamlining regulation and fast-tracking infrastructure.

NWRIC has long been advocating for stronger markets for recovered materials in both Australia and overseas. Already $2.9 billion worth of materials are returned into productive circulation each year with potential for this to double.

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LAST WORD

Mandated recycled content in products and packaging and government procurement of recovered materials will assist in developing these markets. Greater separation of waste leading to cleaner inputs will increase resource recovery and help guarantee supply. Effective application of federal, state, and local government enforcement of existing regulations and standards will help ensure best practice across the sector. Key steps such as reducing the number of unregulated industry operators, and the harmonisation of landfill levies will help to synthesise policy objectives and outcomes and shore up investment.

There is also a real need for coordinated planning between the Commonwealth and the states on critical infrastructure and the investment needed to increase recycling capacity, recover energy from waste and ensure safe treatment and

disposal of hazardous and residual waste. So, what can we expect in 2021?

Domestic and organic markets will continue to increase, while commercial and industrial and construction and demolition markets will be slow to recover.

There is also enormous potential in energy recovery from residual wastes, with an estimated 18.3 million tonnes of residual waste going to landfill by 2030, 75 per cent of this could potentially be diverted to generate energy, creating an investment opportunity of $8.2 to $13.7 billion.

There will be additional focus on diversion of organic waste from landfill by state and territory governments by increasing domestic and commercial and industrial FOGO collection services, composting, and energy recovery capacity Victoria and Tasmania will also

NWRIC has long been advocating for stronger markets for recovered materials in both Australia and overseas.

62 / WMR / December 2020

finalise the design and implementation of their Container Deposit Schemes.

Acceleration and establishment of new product stewardship initiatives, such as the Product Stewardship Centre of Excellence will also get to work, driving efficiencies, collaboration and best practice.

Finally, progress will take place on plastics actions at a national and state level, including phasing out problematic and unnecessary plastics and increasing plastic recovery rates.

Now recognised as an essential service, the waste and recycling industry will look to 2021 as an opportunity to develop as a supplier of resources to the manufacturing and infrastructure sectors and an alternative fuel source. It is an essential industry that has great potential to strengthen Australia’s resource security, generate clean energy, create jobs and protect the environment.

NOT A MOMENT TO WASTE Australians need tyre retailers to be more vigilant than ever on who they choose to work with and how their end of life tyres are being managed. The wasteful age of stockpiling tyres is over. The new era of using this resource to create jobs, spark innovation and deliver strong environmental outcomes has begun.

TSA LEADS THE WAY IN FUNDING INVESTMENT IN INNOVATIVE RESEARCH AND DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS THAT UTILISE AUSTRALIAN TYRE DERIVED PRODUCTS

Do your part by working with a TSA accredited tyre retailer / recycler / collector. TSA’s accreditation signifies the participant has been vetted, audited and assessed and are sustainably managing end of life tyres. Open your smartphone’s camera and hover over the QR Code.

getonboard@tyrestewardship.org.au tyrestewardship.org.au

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