June 2018

IVECO provides a complete refuse collection solution

While the venerable ACCO might be the most recognised truck in the waste collection industry due to its long history, proven durability and fit-for-purpose construction, it’s by no means the only model IVECO earning a keep in this demanding industry.

Locally-made Stralis models are also on the scene, successfully tackling a range of hooklift bin applications, providing operators with a modern and efficient 6×4 and 8×4 platform. As with the ACCO, being built in Melbourne, the Stralis can be customised along the assembly line, providing faster and more efficient body fitment and delivery to customers. Depending on the model selected, the scope for modification can be made considerable.

To achieve the desired end outcome, IVECO’s local engineering and manufacturing teams work closely with the customer and bodybuilder in specifying and manufacturing the vehicle, and there’s also the opportunity for all involved to visit the manufacturing facility to view progress on the build.

As well as targeting traditional waste applications like sideloader and front lift compactors and hook lift work, IVECO has an eye on the future with its development of a smaller compactor models based on the 12 to 16 tonne Eurocargo range.

A shift towards apartment and townhouse living as well as a rise in gated communities such as retirement villages, means that larger, more traditional refuse collection vehicles can struggling with this more confined infrastructure.

With this in mind, IVECO has developed a dual control cab chassis that can accommodate a 14-cubic metre compactor body providing up to five tonnes of payload. Featuring a shortened wheelbase, the Eurocargo compactor is extremely manoeuvrable and has a lower tare weight which allows it better access to tighter private access roads that have gross vehicle mass restrictions.

For a closer look at the IVECO range, please see: www.iveco.com.au

NSW EPA open $9.5M grants to counter National Sword

The NSW Government has announced it will provide $9.5 million in grants for better waste recycling projects to counter the effects of China’s National Sword policy.

The support package is being funded by the Waste Less, Recycle More initiative and will aim to provide a range of short, medium and long-term initiatives to ensure kerbside recycling continues.

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NSW Environment Minister Gabrielle Upton said China’s enforcement of its policy restricts the types of recycled material that China will accept.

“As China is the largest importer of recyclable products from Australia, this policy threatens NSW’s kerbside recycling system and the options for recycled material currently produced in NSW,” Ms Upton said.

Ms Upton has urges local councils to team up with industry to seek funding to improve recycling in NSW.

“A new grant, called the Product Improvement Program, provides $4.5 million for projects that reduce the amount of unrecyclable material left at the end of the recycling process,” she said.

“Another $5 million is available for programs that identify new uses for recyclable materials and increase the production and use of recycled products.

“This includes $2.5 million under the Civil Construction Market Program and $2.5 million under the Circulate Program,” she said.

Ms Upton said the NSW Government is committed to working with councils and industry to improve and strengthen our recycling systems in NSW.

“The NSW Government has consulted with industry and local government to develop the grant programs and I encourage the state’s recycling sector to apply for this funding,” she said.

“An inter-government taskforce has been established to urgently progress a longer-term response to National Sword in partnership with industry and councils.”

Applications to the grants are now open through the NSW Environment Protection Authority.

For more information, click here.

VWMA State Conference

This year’s VWMA State Conference will be held in Victoria’s iconic Yarra Valley on July 31 to 1 August. The conference will bring into sharp focus all things business, industry, community and government related on the topics of waste and resource recovery.

The two-day conference will feature a presentation from Environment Minister Lily D’Ambrosio on the Victorian Government’s waste and resource recovery agenda.

Where: 

Yarra Valley Lodge
Heritage Avenue, Chirnside Park 3116 Wonga Park

Click here to register. 

NWRIC appoint new CEO

The National Waste and Recycling Industry Council (NWRIC) has announced the appointment of a new CEO, effective 1 August.

Rose Read will take up the position with 20 years of experience in the waste, recycling and environmental sectors. She has lead commercial and not-for-profit organisations like the Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association’s MobileMuster and Clean Up Australia.

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She is currently the CEO of the product stewardship arm of MRI E-cycle Solutions and will transition out of the role are MRI to take the position of CEO of NWRIC.

“I am very excited to have the opportunity to work with Council members and State affiliates in addressing key national issues facing the industry,” Ms Read said.

“As a key enabler of the circular economy the recycling industry has much to contribute to Australia economically, environmentally and socially. I look forward to being part of NWRIC and collaborating with members and key stakeholders to create a more vibrant and sustainable waste and recycling industry,” she said.

MRI E-cycle Solutions Managing Director Will LeMessurier said Ms Read has played an important role in setting up MRI’s product stewardship arm over the past two years.

“She will continue to be involved in MRI on a part time basis over the next six months or so as we transition to our new structure. We wish her well in her new role and the continued positive influence she has over our industry,” he said.

The news follows the announcement of outgoing CEO Max Spedding’s retirement after 30 years of experience in the waste and recycling sector.

“Setting up the Council over the past two years has been a challenge but now we have all of the key national companies and state associations on board we are starting to see real and positive outcomes,” said Mr Spedding.

“With our current recycling problems and the urgent need for better infrastructure planning across Australia, Rose and her team have a busy time ahead. I wish them every success.”

New app links cafes and charities to fight food waste

A smartphone app that links food businesses with charities is aiming to reduce food waste by donating excess food.

Researchers from Edith Cowan University (ECU) have trialled the ReFood app in Perth council City of Swan to connect local restaurants and cafes with community not-for-profit organisations that redistribute excess food to those in need.

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The app fills a gap in the market for smaller businesses to give away food and divert it from landfill.

The app was developed by ECU PhD candidate Ele Stojanoska thanks to a $12,798 grant from the Waste Authority WA’s Community Grants scheme.

“The main aim of the ReFood app is to both reduce the amount of food waste going into landfill and also making it much easier for small businesses to link up with not-for-profits to share food,” Ms Stojanoska said.

“The app is very simple to use. All a business has to do is download the app, then when they have excess food they can enter it into the app along with a time that it can be collected. Then a not-for-profit organisation can see what’s available and if the food is suitable for their needs, come and collect it.

“It even shows what food has been donated so businesses can have a record of what they have given away.”

Ms Stojanoska said she was currently analysing data collecting in the pilot of the app to continue the rollout across Perth.

Waste Authority WA Acting Chair Jenny Bloom said the ReFood app would help to achieve the target of diverting 65 per cent of municipal solid waste from landfill by 2020.

“Initiatives like the ReFood app can help increase awareness and education around our understanding of the benefits of waste avoidance, reuse and recycling,” she said.

Owner of the Crooked Spire Coffee House café Mike Matich said the best thing about the app was how easy it was to use.

“No one likes the idea of food being thrown away, so when I heard about the ReFood app and how it could help us link up with local not-for profits I was stoked to take part,” he said.

“It’s super easy to use, all I have to do is enter what type of excess food I have, how much I have and what time it can be collected then wait for it to be picked up.”

National Sword could displace 111M tonnes of plastic waste by 2030

An estimated 111 million metric tonnes of plastic waste will be displaced by China’s National Sword policy by 2030 around the world, according to new research.

The Chinese import ban and its impact on global waste trade research paper published in the journal Science Advances reports that new global ideas are needed to reduce the amount of non-recyclable materials, including redesigning products and funding domestic plastic waste management.

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The report, authored by researchers at the University of Georgia, said China had imported 106 million tonnes of plastic waste since 1992, which makes up more than 45 per cent of total global plastic imports.

The National Sword Policy has implemented new restrictions on the contamination rate for imported waste, requiring a cleaner and more processed version of materials such as plastics, metals, paper, cardboard and textiles.

“The displaced plastic waste is equal to nearly half (47 per cent) of all plastic waste that has been imported globally since reporting began in 1988,” the report said.

“Only 9% of plastic waste has been recycled globally, with the overwhelming majority of global plastic waste being landfilled or ending up contaminating the environment (80 per cent).

“Plastic packaging and single-use items enter the waste stream immediately after use, contributing to a cumulative total of 6.3 billion MT of plastic waste generated worldwide.”

The report warns that if no adjustments are made in solid waste management, then much of the waste that would have been diverted from landfill by customers paying for a recycling service will be landfilled.

“Both the displaced plastic waste and future increases in plastic recycling must be addressed immediately. Initially, the countries exporting the most plastic waste can use this as an opportunity to develop and expand internal markets,” the report said.

“If domestic recycling of plastic waste is not possible, then this constraint reinforces the motivation to reduce use and redesign plastic packaging and products so that they retain their value and are more recyclable in domestic markets.”

Waste Expo Australia

Waste Expo Australia returns to Melbourne on 3-4 October and will feature the highly acclaimed Waste Summit conference and the brand new Wastewater Summit conference. The event will focus on five key themes, including landfill and transfer stations, waste to energy, resource recovery, collections and wastewater and feature more than 50 speakers across the two days. These themes will address policy, legislation, circular economy and solid waste management and will be where the industry tackles its most pressing issues.

Hear from industry experts including Federal Government Environment Minister Josh Frydenberg, Victorian Government Environment Minister Lily D’Ambrosio and organisations such as the National Waste and Recycling Industry Council, Australian Renewable Energy Agency, Australian Organics Recycling Association, Cleanaway, Sustainability Victoria, Melbourne Water and many more.

Waste Expo Australia returns to Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre on 3-4 October. For further information, please visit: www.wasteexpoaustralia.com.au

ACOR calls for more recycled packaging after plastic bag ban

The Australian Council of Recycling (ACOR) has called on large Australian brands to commit to using recycled content in their packaging as Coles and Woolworths phase out single-use plastic bags.

ACOR CEO Pete Shmigel said the move to stop supplying plastic bags in supermarkets is a good step, but a bigger move for the environment and economy is ensuring recycled content material is used for packaging.

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“Giving consumers a chance to buy recycled content products has more benefits than bag bans, and survey work shows more than 80 per cent of Aussies support such a move. Ministers can do more to encourage recycled content in packaging at their next discussion about the China crisis,” Mr Shmigel said.

“Putting recycled content into Australian packaging creates domestic demand for collected material and that drives investment and jobs in remanufacturing into new products, and lower risk for Councils’ kerbside recycling collections.”

“At present, Coles appears to have a voluntary target of 5 per cent of products sold having recycled content. It’s unclear what Woolworths’ target is.”

Mr Shmigel said it would be great if both companies announced what their targets are for recycled content going into the future.

“Without recycled content and other measures to make recycling sustainable, we are ‘pushing’ material out and not ‘pulling’ it through. It just shifts more costs to local governments for recycling services. If we can’t get progress through voluntary measures, the community is right to expect regulation to get it done, as is the case in Europe,” Mr Shmigel said.

“Coca-Cola is showing what can be done. Mount Franklin water bottles are all made with recycled content plastic, and they are looking at switching 50% of all their bottles to recycled content,” he said.

Lighting Council Australia relaunch product stewardship scheme

Lighting Council Australia (LCA) is relaunching the industry-led battery recycling program, Exitcycle, with support from the Queensland Government to improve the recycling rates of emergency and exit lights.

The voluntary product stewardship initiative developed by the Queensland Department of Environment and Heritage Protection and LCA was launched in 2015 as a 12-month pilot project to provide guidance on issues impacting recycling batteries from metropolitan, regional and remote areas.

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Commercial users commit to recycling at least 95 per cent of their end of life emergency and exit lighting batteries as part of the program, while facilitators commit to promoting the scheme to users of these batteries.

LCA National Marketing and Environment Manager Roman Gowor said the program brings industry, government, and community together to improve environmental outcomes, noting that there are approximately 30 million emergency and exit lights across the country.

“The majority of the green-emergency lights we see across all buildings are powered by a combination of older battery technologies, which often use cadmium, nickel metal hydride or sealed lead acid,” Mr Gowor said.

“In the coming years, newer generation batteries will use more sustainable components, however multiple sectors—government, industry and end users— must work together to find the best way of increasing recycling rates.”

The program will be launched at the Queensland Parliament House in Brisbane, with attendees including recyclers, government officials and the lighting industry.

“The Exitcycle approach is successful because it is very well suited at addressing the specific waste issue,” Mr Gowor said.

“Unlike a great proportion of batteries used across the economy, emergency and exit lights are not typically used in households and, by law, can only be serviced by electrical contractors. The Exitcycle program is more targeted than other programs and focuses on electricians and facility and building managers,” he said.