New pilot looks to boost use of C&D waste

QLD construction and demolition recycling
NSW EPA is trialling a new initiative to link producers of construction waste with projects that could make use of it.

The authority is inviting local councils and private enterprises to apply for grants under the Civil Construction Market Pilot program. The “matchmaker” business recycling service aims to divert unwanted construction and demolition (C&D) material from one project away from landfill to benefit another project instead.

The launch of the trial program on 1 November came just days after NSW EPA published its draft minimum recycling standards for C&D waste for consultation, which are due to come into force in March 2017.

The Civil Construction Market Pilot program is making grants available to help consultants, contractors, waste service providers and local government personnel find opportunities where construction and demolition waste, a major contributor to landfill, can be effectively used elsewhere.

NSW EPA Executive Director Waste and Resource Recovery Steve Beaman said the authority wanted to increase the C&D industry’s take-up of recycling and reuse opportunities.

“Construction and demolition activities account for more than 6.8 million tonnes of waste in NSW each year, and more than a quarter of that is sent to landfill,” Mr Beaman said. “This pilot program aims to divert at least 12,000 tonnes of construction and demolition waste from landfill each year by matching waste to reuse opportunities.”

In practice, this could see a NSW EPA-funded local council sourcing crushed concrete, crushed brick and glass fines from construction projects, and recycling it to build pavements.

NSW EPA will run an information session in Sydney on Monday 14 November to provide more details about the pilot program and application process, with a recording due to be published later that week.

“The availability of these grants means councils and businesses can be more strategic in their approach to reuse and recycling, and can add landfill diversion into the early planning stages of their projects,” added Mr Beaman.

The Circulate construction and demolition pilot program will run over the 2016/17 financial year across the Sydney metropolitan and regional areas. Project grants range from $20,000 to $75,000.

Details of the information session are available by emailing expressions of interest to industrial.ecology@epa.nsw.gov.au. The deadline for grant applications is 25 November, with more information available on the Civil Construction Market Pilot program section of the NSW EPA website.

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