Living Earth has been rejuvenating soils for future generations across New Zealand for 30 years. A team in South Australia is now bringing the company’s compost and soil enhancers to Australian markets.
To date, Living Earth has composted enough green waste to build a garden the width of a road from New Zealand to Australia. While the figurative green road, made from more than two million tonnes of organic waste, is paving the way for better soil outcomes in New Zealand, it’s also having tangible results across the ditch.
Living Earth Australia was launched 12 months ago, harnessing the processes, expertise, and products of the New Zealand organics industry.
A subsidiary of the Integrated Waste Services (IWS) Group, Living Earth Australia will bring a range of composts and mulches to the agricultural, landscape and retail industries.
Grace Barila, Environmental Manager, says Living Earth Australia is an opportunity for IWS Group to consolidate its organics recycling processes.
“We’re confident we can go out to market in a larger way,” Grace says.
“We’ve been processing organics for several years for councils and wanted to improve those systems. We know we can provide good quality products to help rejuvenate our soils.”
Each year, organic waste in landfill generates about 13 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. The National Waste Plan has set an ambitious target to halve organic waste sent to landfills by 2030 and commits states and territories to roll out Food Organic Garden Organic (FOGO) collection services. The aim is to convert organic waste into recycled organic products such as compost.
Through organics recycling and the return of compost back to soils, greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced. But there are also additional benefits, such as improved soil health and biodiversity, increased agricultural productivity, enhanced food security, and water quality.
Grace says this is particularly important in South Australia where the local agricultural industry is struggling to work with depleted soils.
IWS Group, supported by environmental management company Ennovo, processes about 50,000 tonnes annually of FOGO from local councils, producing a range of compost, mulch, and soil enhancements. The products have recently been AS4454 certified. Additionally, the South Australian site meets quality assurance and quality control standards set by Living Earth New Zealand.
Grace says an onsite laboratory provides real-time data to ensure products continue to meet strict standards. The site also has a native nursery where compost products are batch tested alongside the grow-out of native plants for large-scale revegetation works.
Living Earth focuses on creating compost that is used as the foundational ingredient in all its mixes, helping to promote long-term soil health.
“Our ultimate aim is rejuvenating soils for future generations,” Grace says. “Our ethos is all about sustainable development and reducing waste.
“Laboratory testing provides evidence that our products are working well according to nutrient level, moisture content and particle size grading. But at ground level, we have farmers who are noticing the difference in their crop when using our compost.
“Farmers love our products.”
Grace says there has been a marked increase in the amount of FOGO that needs to be processed. Living Earth Australia has restructured its facility to cater for larger volumes of waste and produce more varied products.
However, contamination continues to be a challenge. While South Australia has led the way in introducing plastic bans, Grace says there’s still confusion about what is compostable and what isn’t. Plastic bags, garden equipment and pots, among other things, continue to be found in FOGO bins.
To that end, Living Earth Australia has invested heavily in machinery to help remove contamination, purchasing an EDGE TRT622 trommel screen and an EDGE TRM831 mobile trommel screen – the first in Australia – from industrial equipment supplier FOCUS Enviro.
“The TRM831 is the largest wheel mounted on the market globally. It’s sheer scale provides operators with unrivalled production rates, ideal for operators seeking to boost their production capabilities,” says FOCUS Enviro’s Ryan McParland.
“High-capacity processing equipment, such as the TRM831 will play an important role helping Living Earth Australia meet its plans for expansion.”
He says the EDGE TRM831 portable trommel not only guarantees huge production rates but offers reliability with minimum upkeep.
“Trommel screens from EDGE Innovate are simple to operate and are designed to require minimal maintenance. Customers know they will start up and consistently process large volumes of material day after day without any of the major upkeep you would associate with other products such as star screens. That’s the biggest selling feature of a machine like this.”
The EDGE trommels supplied by FOCUS Enviro are designed for easy operation. They are loaded with smart features such as an intelligent load management system that ensures the unit is running at optimum capacity at all times while minimising the risk of blockages occurring.
“All the operator needs to do is to keep loading in the feedstock,” Ryan says.
Full remote functionality over all major functions such a feeder speed and screening angle comes as standard, allowing the loader operator to stay in complete control from a safe distance, while a 180 degree remote-controlled radial fines conveyor reduces the need to constantly move screened material.
“To further reduce the changes of bridging or drum overload, EDGE Innovate has complemented its intelligent load management system with a larger designed hopper opening and supplied industry-leading belt widths to allow a smooth flow of material through the trommel,” Ryan says.
FOCUS Enviro has established itself as a premier supplier of organic and waste processing solutions, not only in Australia but also in New Zealand. Many leading waste management companies trust the company’s expertise and industry-leading products to enhance their operations.
“Our service goes beyond simply providing equipment,” says Ryan. “We fully invest ourselves in our clients’ businesses, ensuring the solutions we deliver meet their specific needs.”
In the project with Living Earth Australia, FOCUS Enviro’s engineers thoroughly analysed their feedstocks, making precise adjustments to parameters like drum speed, screening angle, feed rate, and the aggressiveness of the drum lifters. They also selected the appropriate screen media to ensure the finished product met stringent quality standards – all before the final handover was completed.
The TRT622 tracked trommel screen, the largest track mounted trommel available in Australia, has proven pedigree among organic waste processors. Its heavy-duty construction design and high manoeuvrability have made it a popular choice.
With a 6.9-metre-long screen drum, it provides advanced screening options and is driven by a direct four-wheel drive system with a variable drum speed of 0-30 revolutions per minute.
Again, Ryan points to its enhanced features such as hydraulic load sensing and automatic sequential start-up that ensures ease of use and minimal supervision as to why the TRT622 has been so positively received.
“Its customisation has lent itself to being able to flourish in many applications. Thanks to a wide range of various aperture meshes, drum styles such as punch plate, woven mesh or fully welded punch plate drums with scrolls, all of course interchangeable; has allowed the EDGE TRT622 to excel not only here in Australia but also in North America.”
One of the unique features of the EDGE TRT622 trommel screen is the radial remote-controlled fines conveyor that can place more than 1000 cubic metres of material in a single stockpile – almost 10 times that of traditional trommels.
Paul Bowden, Asset and Carbon Development Manager for Ennovo, says reliable operation for a long time, with consistency, is a critical step in Living Earth Australia’s production process. Machinery that is extremely well built for durability and minimal downtime were key requirements.
Equally as important was after-sales support from a supplier with good stock on parts and who would support the servicing regimes and preventative maintenance standards.
“FOCUS Enviro had great communication throughout the procurement process and delivered the machine and critical parts on time,” Paul says. “They also spent time with our service team and operators throughout the commissioning of the plant and made sure training and operation were set up from the beginning.”
Grace says the new equipment and partnership with Living Earth is already bringing benefits in the form of increased contracts with local councils.
Living Earth Australia products created from FOGO and green collections will be redirected back to the councils, closing the loop on organics. Bulk products will be delivered to farmers and stocked at IWS Group transfer stations and supply yards. As it continues to look at initiatives to support the community, Living Earth is introducing the Hulka Bag – a delivery service of its mulch and compost products in flexible cubic-metre bags.
For more information, visit: www.focusenviro.com.au
