waste ISSUE 21
communityconnect
keep calm keep recycling Our New Waste Education Officer Samala Heart will be supporting our community to avoid, reduce, reuse and recycle our waste items as best we can. “It’s an exciting time in the waste industry,” says Samala. “Following China’s National Sword Policy, the country’s recycling efforts are being looked at with fresh eyes." "Our approach is ‘we’re all in this together’. This includes residents supporting the local recycling industry by doing their bit and clubs, schools and community groups involving themselves in initiatives like Boomerang Bags and Return and Earn programs." "The current nationwide focus on improving onshore processing of recyclable materials will be better for the environment and provide more jobs here. We’re lucky to be part of an innovative region who work together to create positive change, so it’s important to make sure that we’re only placing items that can be recycled in the yellow-lidded recycling bin. This supports our recycling efforts and assists the sorting staff at Lismore’s Recycling Facility to excel at their jobs.”
32
watch
communityconnect |
Ballina Shire residents are being asked to make some simple changes to their recycling habits as the effects of China’s National Sword Policy are felt across the country. The National Sword policy is the Chinese Government’s mechanism to limit contamination rates of recycled products to less than 0.5%. Up until last year, the majority of the first world’s recycling was sent to China for remanufacture, however most Australian Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) simply cannot comply with the 0.5% threshold. This applies to plastics, paper and cardboard products, which make up the majority of what goes into our kerbside recycling bins. We are lucky to be able to send our kerbside recycling to the state of the art MRF at Lismore, but this policy shift has placed pressure on recycling industries across Australia. In order to maximise what can be recycled, and to keep the processing costs down, Ballina Shire Council is asking residents to make some small adjustments to household recycling habits to help cope with the change. • Keep your recycling as clean as possible. • Do not put anything into your recycling bin that cannot be recycled. Keep it simple: aluminium, steel, glass, hard plastic, bagged up soft plastic, paper and cardboard. • Do not put anything smaller than a business card size into your recycling bin, that includes loose lids. • Keep items like hoses, pipes and anything that has many different types of materials in it (e.g. a plastic toy with bits of steel) out of your recycling bin. • Keep contamination out. The main offenders are: dirty nappies, clothing, shoes and anything that can get tangled up such as rope, hose and fairy lights. Council will continue to keep you updated with tips and reminders. Feel free to contact Council staff on 1300 864 444 if you would like further information.
THE MAGAZINE OF BALLINA SHIRE COUNCIL
