Inside Waste February - March 2019 by Prime Creative Media

Official Publication of the

ISSUE 88 | FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

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Strategic planning essential to solving waste crisis By Paul Green

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ISSN 1837-5618

THE UPPER HOUSE INQUIRY into the NSW EPA highlighted the many, pressing issues facing the waste industry in NSW, including concerns about the waste levy, illegal dumping, interstate transportation of waste, regulation of energy-from-waste projects, the EPA’s regulatory role, the lack of strategic planning for waste management infrastructure, and the challenges facing the recycling and resource recovery sector. The high waste levy was partially credited for the state’s impressive resource recovery rate, however, stakeholders expressed concerns about its effectiveness in supporting the development of much-needed waste infrastructure, particularly recycling and resource recovery facilities (RRFs) and alternative waste technologies. In 2014-15, NSW generated about 19 million tonnes of waste and is currently the second highest per capita producer of waste in the world. It’s essential that waste management services and infrastructure are strategically planned and delivered appropriately. However, successive NSW governments fail to leverage levy funds to support the development of these much-needed services and facilities, leaving NSW dependent on landfill for waste disposal. The inquiry committee made a number of recommendations to overcome this issue, including the government hypothecating a greater percentage of levy funds to local councils and the waste industry to support the provision of additional waste services, initiatives and infrastructure. A number of stakeholders said that

funds are especially useful in developing alternative waste solutions. Waste Less, Recycle More is the primary initiative funded through the levy, providing funding for recycling, organics collections, market development, managing problem wastes, new infrastructure, local councils and programs to tackle illegal dumping and litter. The EPA said that the objectives of the initiative include stimulating investment in waste and recycling facilities and infrastructure, changing community attitudes towards reuse and recycling, and strengthening compliance and enforcement. The committee received evidence that the EPA should be restructured to enhance the regulation of the industry. “Government is urged to implement the type of reform and cultural change that was so effective in shifting the priorities of WorkCover to SafeWork to achieve regulation and compliance together with support and education as equal priorities,” the Australian Organics Recycling Association said. “This may require restructuring the EPA to achieve a better balance between regulating illegal activities and working with the organics recycling industry.” The Australian Council of Recycling suggested that opportunities to incorporate future advances in technology into energy-from-waste facilities will depend on landfill levies. According to the Illawarra Pilot Joint Organisation, the effectiveness of the levy in allowing councils to develop alternative waste solutions is not always clear, particularly in regional areas. “Councils in regional areas face the challenge of maintaining an adequate income stream to fund landfill

operation fixed costs, as they would still be required for some waste streams not suitable for alternative waste treatment,” the organisation said. There can be no doubt that the levy has contributed to the development of waste management projects in this state. However, while the levy has supported significant investment in alternative waste technologies, it is clearly insufficient to adequately deal with our overall waste management needs. This is disappointing, as the levy has generated significant amounts of money for the government. A greater proportion of levy funds should be returned to local council and the waste industry to fund innovative solutions. In NSW, the current dependence on landfill is unsustainable, and local councils and the government must work collaboratively to deliver suitable alternatives for waste management. Evidence received by the committee suggests that the EPA seems to be struggling in some areas and therefore needs a further review of their structure. The committee recommended that the EPA’s Waste and Resource Recovery Infrastructure Strategy helps: • identify appropriate locations; • facilitate new infrastructure; • enable the circular economy; and • create markets for secondary materials. I recently moved an amendment to the Protection of the Environment Operations Amendment (Asbestos Waste) Bill 2018 to ensure local councils have 12 months to implement the changes. The bill contained two schedules that made changes to the laws and penalties surrounding the unlawful movement of asbestos and will impose stricter

INSIDE 18 Inside Waste Awards 30 Waste Transportation 35 Young Professionals 42 C onsultants Survey

Paul Green, chair of the Upper House Inquiry into the NSW EPA.

sanctions for offences, while minimising impacts on legitimate operators. It sends a strong deterrent message to illegal dumpers of asbestos. It is my hope that the increased revenue as a result of the 100 per cent increase in maximum penalties for dumping asbestos will go back into tackling illegal asbestos dumping, rather than being returned to the government. The minister and the EPA have agreed to give councils 12 months to meet the standards. I encouraged the minister to hold true to that agreement, and if there is a change in government, we want to ensure that the amendments carry over. Asbestos is dangerous and we can see that an urgent response is required. However, we need to ensure that local councils are given time to get on board. Paul Green is an Australian politician who is a member of the NSW Legislative Council. He chaired the Inquiry into the NSW EPA, which handed down 36 recommendations to the government.

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Back into the light WHAT A year it was in 2018! It kicked off with China putting everything else to the sword – no longer importing half of the world’s plastic scrap and paper. This meant that nearly everyone else’s revenues, which were derived from selling scrap to China, was drawn to a naught and that included us, here in Australia. It caused panic because there was simply no long-term plan to counter it. Stop gaps came along like the Australian Recycling Label (ARL) that helped drive more sustainable supplychain models. Also, the plastic bag bans for most states in Australia was one of the key events in 2018. On top of this, in September, the National Packaging targets for 2025 was launched with ambitions for 100 per cent of all Australia’s packaging to be reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025 or earlier. While it was mostly just talk and agreements in the form of targets and recommendations through policy, there

were a few notable confirmations of action. One of these, was the confirmation to develop Australia’s first thermal Waste-to-Energy (WtE) facility, located at Kwinana by 2021. Depending on how you look at it, we may have been done with 2018 misfiring on a lot of things and a lot of finger pointing, but we, at Inside Waste, do want to start the year right, pointing our readers in the right direction. This year we have brought back the Inside Waste Consultants’ Survey. As always, we have gotten feedback, refined and made the process and analysis better – all thanks to those who have contributed over the past few months. Last but not least, we also have a massive spread for our inaugural Inside Waste Awards night that was held last December. It was great to see the old and new faces get together for a big night to share words of encouragement and acknowledge achievements and innovations in an otherwise challenging year for the industry.

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Articles All articles submitted for publication become the property of the publisher. The Editor reserves the right to adjust any article to conform with the magazine format. Copyright Inside Waste is owned by Prime Creative Media and published by John Murphy. All material in Inside Waste is copyright and no part may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means (graphic, electronic or mechanical including information and retrieval systems) without written permission of the publisher. 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 Inside Waste are not necessarily the opinions of, or endorsed by the publisher unless otherwise stated.

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Profile | Caroline Beggs Caroline Beggs is the project manager, marketing & business development at CSS Equipment. What was your first job in the sector? My first role was with CSS Equipment, which was exciting as we work with some of the best technology from around the world. What’s your favourite part of the job? Besides getting to play with really big machines, I’m currently working across both recycling equipment and waste-to-energy and there’s never a dull moment! The combination of the two businesses offer surprising opportunities for collaboration, which is something I am very passionate about. How has the waste management changed during your time? Over the past nine years the industry has become more professional, proactive and organised. Further, the industry is embracing gender equality, with many more women working in the sector now than when I started. It’s fantastic to hear from women who have been welcomed and supported in the industry. What are some achievements that you are most proud of? Last year, I successfully attained my high-risk work licence. Forking large equipment out to freight provides me with a welcome break from my mostly desk-based work. It’s been great to work as part of a team and to continue to learn and add value for our clients and suppliers. What’s next for CSS Equipment? There are some strong technology companies who are taking their first steps into Australian and New Zealand markets in partnership with CSS Equipment and our amazing clients in 2019. We can’t wait to introduce you!

Adidas feature recycled wear at the Australian Open ADIDAS recently featured its new Adidas x Parley tennis collection at this year’s Australian Open tennis tournament. The eco-innovative collection aims to create change and inspire the industry, athletes, spectators and fans to better protect the oceans. The latest collection of apparel and footwear are made with Parley Ocean Plastic, which is created from upcycled plastic waste intercepted from beaches and in coastal communities. From Adidas’ standpoint, this helps turn the eco-problems into useable material for wear, while combating marine plastic pollution, raising awareness and championing eco-innovative solutions to one of today’s most pressing environmental issues. The collection debuted on court at the Australian Open with internationally renowned players including Sascha Zverev, Caroline Woznaiacki, Angelique Kerber, Jelena Ostapenko, Lucas Pouille, Dominic Thiem and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. “It was very exciting to bring the Adidas x Parley collection to the 2019

Australian Open and using the collection as a symbol to raise awareness about the need to protect our oceans,” said Adidas spokesperson Shannon Morgan. “Since 2015, Adidas and Parley have collaborated to raise awareness, help end marine plastic pollution and drive creative ideas that can change the future of sport, the industry and better protect our planet.” “Adidas has been our ally since we started. But tennis now joining the movement with this A-team of outstanding players adds a new layer to the Parley network,” added founder of Parley for the Oceans, Cyrill Gutsch. “Together, we are not only turning the 2019 Australian Open into a campaign for the oceans, we are inviting a new layer of society to become activists – the global tennis community.” “Melbourne is one of my favourite cities. I love playing here and being close to the ocean. That’s why I’m excited by this collaboration between Adidas and Parley for the Oceans – this collection looks great and has all of the technical

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// News

features to support my performance on court but is also part of a movement to create change and protect the oceans,” said Tennis star Sascha Zverev. When the collaboration first started, the concept was first implemented in running shoes, where ocean plastic waste was turned into thread woven into the shoes. The initiative has since gone global with the apparel extending across multiple sports. In the US, Adidas and the National Hockey League (NHL) had announced

new ADIZERO Authentic jerseys for the 2019 Honda NHL All-Star Game. According to Adidas, these are the first-ever NHL hockey jerseys featuring repurposed and upcycled materials, created in partnership with Parley for the Oceans. The new special edition Adidas ADIZERO Authentic Pro x Parley jerseys were worn by the NHL’s best players exclusively during the 2019 SAP NHL All-Star Skills and the 2019 Honda NHL All-Star Game.

The new eco-innovative collection debuted on court at this year’s Australian Open.

Profile | WRITE Solutions WRITE Solutions provides waste management and consultancy services for all businesses in WA and other key areas around Australia. When was the company founded and why? WRITE was founded in January 2018 with the purpose of providing sustainable waste solutions and education for businesses in WA. We aim to instigate simple changes which will define our future quality of life. What are the key services that WRITE Solutions offers? WRITE launched its closed-loop service to help businesses recycle their organic waste in May 2018. We also provide waste and cleaning services for events planning and integrating sustainable waste practices, helping boost awareness in the community, and increasing waste diversion through composting and recycling strategies. How does WRITE create tailor-made solutions for its clients? WRITE believes that every business is different so it provides a free consultation and site survey in order to discuss and outline solutions which could work best for their environment. What are some of WRITE’s plans and ambitions for the next 12-18 months? We are partnering with WARD Packaging for the Swan Valley Organic revolution to help businesses increase their sustainability. Our goal is to divert 500 tonnes of organic waste from businesses in the area by December 2019. We are also partnering with Boomerang Alliance for Plastic Free Bassendean to assist businesses to reduce their plastic use and make the switch to sustainable alternatives, as well as decreasing their waste to landfill rates. More: www.writesolutions.com.au or 0420 872 470

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Return and Earn sees 6.8 million containers returned during festive period ACCORDING to a report by NSW EPA, Return and Earn broke records for recycling over the Christmas – New Year period, setting a new daily record and processing more than 91 million drink containers. As of January 2, 2019, 6.8 million drink containers were returned across the state. “Between December 21, 2018 and January 7, 2019, there were six days with more than six million drink containers returned, and the daily average is now at 5.8 million drink containers a day being processed across the state,” said Gabrielle Upton, environment minister. “This shows strong community support for the NSW government’s Return and Earn scheme, as more and more people are recycling drink containers rather than throwing them away. “Since the scheme started, more than 1.2 billion drink containers

have been returned, which is a massive turnaround in the way people dispose of their empty drink containers. As well as reducing litter, Return and Earn is creating jobs and helping charities create an alternate income stream. “Employment charity Hoxton Industries is running Return and Earn bulk depots at Villawood and Ingleburn, enabling them to create jobs for people who would otherwise face barriers to mainstream employment.” Garry Carr, director of Hoxton Industries, said running a Return and Earn depot has transformed the employment charity’s operations. “Return and Earn meant we could expand our operations, employ 10 additional staff and return nearly $200,000 to the community,” Carr said. “Our mission is to create jobs for people who face barriers to

The daily average now sits at around 5.8 million drink containers being processed across the state.

mainstream employment, and we can now do this in new areas and with new employment skills.” “As a result of Return and Earn, eligible drink container litter volume has dropped by 44 per cent and now represents an all-time low of 37 per

cent of the NSW litter volume stream,” Upton added. “Return and Earn has been a success because it is backed in by the people of NSW and it’s fantastic to see them help to reduce the amount of litter in the environment.”

Councils urged to recycle 87 per cent of food waste sent to landfill A NATION-WIDE ‘Let’s Go FOGO’ campaign is being launched to urge 84 per cent of local councils to provide Food Organics Garden Organics (FOGO) collection services for residents. According to the National Waste Report 2018, only 16 per cent of councils around Australia offer kerbside food organics recycling bins and 87 per cent of food waste went to landfill in 2016-17. BioBag World Australia director Scott Morton said food waste costs Australia $20 billion a year and half of this comes from our homes.

“Up to 50 per cent of general household waste is FOGO. The amount of greenhouse gases produced by food waste in Australian landfill each year is equivalent to the emissions of Australia’s steel and iron ore industries combined,” Morton continued. “South Australia has the most councils offering residents FOGO bins, followed by NSW and Victoria. Tasmania and Western Australia are catching up, but Queensland is lagging far behind.” A snapshot of councils that offer residents kerbside FOGO bins show:

• • • • • • •

40 per cent in South Australia 26 per cent in NSW 24 per cent in Victoria 10 per cent in Tasmania Three per cent in Western Australia One per cent in Queensland None in the ACT and NT “Organic waste contains valuable resources that can’t be recovered from landfill and recycling food waste is an opportunity for a better environmental outcome,” Morton said. “Not only do FOGO generate the greenhouse gas methane as they

Many councils are already trialling or introducing FOGO collection services around the country, but the numbers are still low.

INSIDEWASTE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

decompose in landfill, but their nutrients remain locked in landfill and can’t be used again to grow plants and food. “In landfill, organic waste also produces a liquid that can pollute groundwater, create odour, encourage pests and create unstable landforms. Diverting food waste from landfill with a FOGO bin service has many benefits.” Many councils are already trialling or introducing FOGO collection services around the country, but the numbers are still low. “Recycling organic waste can reduce the costs of landfill disposal for local councils and provide nutrient rich fertilisers to replenish Australian soil, so farmers rely less on chemical fertilisers,” Morton added. “We need more councils to adopt FOGO now because it’s a viable economic and environmental solution. Composting FOGO waste is cheaper than sending it to landfill so ratepayers benefits from extra funding for other community services. “People can help move our local councils towards FOGO faster by telling their local councillors they’re ready for a FOGO bin to collect their food waste.” New research in South Australia shows using compostable bags in kitchen caddies significantly increases diversion of food waste from landfill.

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Bingo Industries awarded grant for Braeside Recycling Centre redevelopment SUSTAINABILITY Victoria recently awarded Bingo Industries a grant of $500,000 as part of the third round of funding released under the state government’s Resource Recovery Infrastructure Fund. The fund aims to recognise innovative recycling infrastructure projects that improve the collection and processing of recyclable materials and generate jobs in the Victorian resource recovery industry. When redevelopment works are complete, Bingo’s Braeside Recycling Centre will be a unique resource recovery facility in Victoria, significantly contributing to the state’s resource recovery efforts. Bingo’s Braeside Recycling Centre will process mixed solid inert commercial and industrial (C&I) and building and demolition (B&D) waste. The Braeside facility will divert approximately 100,000 tonnes of waste from landfill across target waste streams in its first year of operation, with a target resource recovery rate of 80 per cent. “Bingo is excited about the role we have to play in assisting governments

and communities in achieving their sustainability outcomes through developing innovative recycling infrastructure,” said Daniel Tartak, Bingo Industries CEO and managing director. “We see the redevelopment of our Braeside and West Melbourne facilities as crucial in assisting Victoria in addressing the recent issues developed as a result of external pressures on waste management infrastructure, such as China’s ban on importing Australian waste.” Victoria is expected to be producing 21 million tonnes of waste per year by 2044 and since the introduction of the China Sword Policy, waste has been a major focus for the Victorian government and local councils alike. China implemented a ban on importing 24 categories of solid waste in January 2018, affecting an estimated 619,000 tonnes of Australian waste materials. Bingo invested $53 million on its initial expansion into Victoria in late 2017 with the acquisition of three businesses – Konstruct Recycling, Resource Recovery Victoria and AAZ

Bingo sees the redevelopment as crucial in assisting Victoria to address the recent issues faced by the waste sector.

Recycling. Bingo purchased the Braeside site in late 2017 and was awarded development approval by City of Kingston local council on December 21, 2018. Redevelopment work will commence at the site in early 2019 and is expected to be completed in the second half of 2019. The redevelopment will be extensive, with a complete rebuild of the existing infrastructure, significantly improving resource recovery rates and minimising operational impacts

on neighbouring land. The recycling facility will be completely enclosed with innovative noise and dust mitigation systems installed across the facility. Bingo now operates a fleet of 77 trucks and five recycling and waste management facilities in Victoria, employing over 130 Victorian employees. Bingo views Victoria as a key part of achieving its vision to see a waste-free Australia by diverting waste from landfill and moving towards a circular economy.

Recycling biosolids to make sustainable bricks RESEARCHERS from RMIT University have successfully demonstrated that fired-clay brick which incorporates biosolids could be a sustainable solution for both the wastewater treatment and brickmaking industries, according to reports by the institution. Published recently in the journal Buildings, the research showed how making biosolids bricks only required around half the energy of conventional bricks. As well as being cheaper to produce, biosolids bricks also had a lower thermal conductivity, transferring less heat to potentially give buildings higher environmental performance. Currently, around 30 per cent of the world’s biosolids are stockpiled or sent to landfill, using up valuable land and potentially emitting greenhouse gases, creating an environmental challenge. About five million tonnes of the biosolids produced in Australia, New Zealand, the EU, US and Canada currently go to landfill or stockpiles each year. Using a minimum 15 per cent biosolids content in 15 per cent of bricks produced could use up these

As well as being cheaper to produce, biosolids bricks also had a lower thermal conductivity, transferring less heat to potentially give buildings higher environmental performance.

five million tonnes. Lead investigator associate professor Abbas Mohajerani said the research sought to tackle two environmental issues – the stockpiles of biosolids and the excavation of soil required for brick production. “More than three billion cubic metres of clay soil is dug up each year

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for the global brickmaking industry, to produce about 1.5 trillion bricks,” Mohajerani said. “Using biosolids in bricks could be the solution to these big environmental challenges. It’s a practical and sustainable proposal for recycling the biosolids currently stockpiled or going to landfill around

the globe.” The research examined the physical, chemical and mechanical properties of fired-clay bricks incorporating different proportions of biosolids, from 10 to 25 per cent. The biosolid-enhanced bricks passed compressive strength tests and analysis demonstrated heavy metals are largely trapped within the brick. Biosolids can have significantly different chemical characteristics, so the researchers recommend further testing before large-scale production. The research also showed brick firing energy demand was cut by up to 48.6 per cent for bricks incorporating 25 per cent biosolids. This is due to the organic content of the biosolids and could considerably reduce the carbon footprint of brick manufacturing companies. The results of a comparative Life Cycle Assessment and an emissions study conducted as part of the research confirmed biosolids bricks offered a sustainable alternative approach to addressing the environmental impacts of biosolids management and brick manufacturing.

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

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BASF co-founds global Alliance to End Plastic Waste Through the alliance, new solutions will be developed and brought to scale, which will minimise and manage plastic waste.

BASF have co-founded a global alliance of nearly 30 companies in a bid to advance solutions that reduce and eliminate plastic waste in the environment, especially in the ocean. The Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW) have committed over $1 billion, with the goal of investing $1.5 billion over the next five years to help end plastic waste in the environment. New solutions will be developed and brought to scale, which will minimise and manage plastic waste. This also includes the promotion of solutions for used plastics by helping to enable a circular economy. “We strongly support the aim to reduce plastic waste in the environment,” said Dr Martin Brudermuller, chairman of the board of executive directors and chief technology officer at BASF SE. “We are co-founding the AEPW because we want to drive and promote solutions that will effectively help solve the world’s plastic waste problem. “Plastics are efficient materials that can save resources and enable health, safety, as well as convenience benefits for society. These benefits could be contradicted if plastics and their waste are neither used nor disposed nor recycled in a responsible manner.” Understanding where the plastic 12

waste originates from is key. Research by the Ocean Conservancy shows that plastics in the ocean predominantly originate from litter on land. Most of the plastic waste is spread through rivers and can be traced back to 10 major rivers around the world, mainly in Asia and Africa. Many of these rivers flow through densely populated areas, which have a lack of adequate waste collection and recycling infrastructure, leading to significant waste leakage. The AEPW will initiate actions where they are most needed. This will include projects that contribute to solutions in four key areas: • Infrastructure development to collect and manage waste and increase recycling; • Innovation to advance and scale up new technologies that make recycling and recovering plastics easier and create value from postuse plastics; • Education and engagement of governments, businesses and communities to mobilise actions; and • Clean-up of concentrated areas of plastic waste in the environment, particularly the major conduits of waste, such as rivers, that carry land-based waste on the ocean. “Everyone agrees that plastic waste does not belong in our oceans or

INSIDEWASTE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

anywhere in the environment,” said David Taylor, CEO of Proctor & Gamble and chairman of the AEPW. “This new alliance is the most comprehensive effort to date to end plastic waste in the environment.” The alliance is a not-for-profit organisation that includes companies from across the global plastics and consumer goods value-chain – chemical and plastic manufacturers, consumer goods companies, retailers, converters and waste management companies. The alliance will work with governments, inter-governmental organisations, academia, nongovernment organisations and civil society to invest in joint projects to eliminate plastic waste from the environment. The engagement of BASF in the alliance reinforces the company’s engagement for a responsible handling of plastics. “One important measure to end uncontrolled entry of plastics into the environment is to build up closed circles where plastic can be used as new raw material,” Brudermuller said. “The chemical industry plays an important role in innovating and implementing large-scale processes to convert plastic waste into new products.” One example of how BASF is working

on innovative technologies that promote the recovering and recycling of plastics is its recently initiated ChemCycling project. Together with its customers and partners, BASF developed and manufactured the first pilot products based on chemically recycled plastic waste. BASF is also actively implementing the international program Operation Clean Sweep globally in all its plastic pellet production sites, which aims to prevent plastic pellet loss along the value chain through behavioural, organisational and technical measures. Furthermore, BASF engages in various collaborations and association projects – such as World Plastics Council, Ellen MacArthur Foundation and CEFLEX – on waste management and education. The following companies are the founding members of the AEPW – BASF, Berry Global, Braskem, Chevron Phillips Chemical Company, Clariant, Covestro, CP Group, Dow, DSM, ExxonMobil, Formosa Plastics Corporation USA, Henkel, LyondellBasell, Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings, Mitsui Chemicals, NOVA Chemicals, OxyChem, PolyOne, Proctor & Gamble, Reliance Industries, SABIC, Sasol, Shell, SUEZ, SCG Chemicals, Sumitomo Chemical, Total, Veolia, and Versalis.

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SUEZ joins consortium to develop East Rockingham RRF THE consortium developing the East Rockingham Resource Recovery Facility (RRF) has awarded SUEZ the contract of waste management partner for the project for a minimum term of 20 years. According to SUEZ, the entry into the project represents the single largest commitment by a waste management company to the development of the energy from waste sector in Australia. The consortium, which consists of Hitachi Zosen INOVA (HZI), Tribe Infrastructure Group and New Energy Corporation, was established in 2016 and has since won a series of competitive tenders for long-term contracts with local and regional government authorities in the Perth metropolitan area. The project encompasses the design, construction, financing and operation of a greenfield energy from waste facility in the Rockingham Industry Zone, 40km south of the Perth Central Business District. As stated on SUEZ’s website, the new facility will treat approximately 300,000 tonnes per year of residual waste from municipal, commercial and

industrial sources and up to 30,000 tonnes per year of biosolids. The energy from waste facility will generate 29MW of reliable renewable energy – enough to power over 36,000 homes. SUEZ will combine its international energy from waste experience with its market-leading network of assets and infrastructure in Western Australia. Its role in the consortium will include: • Waste supply – SUEZ will supply at least 65,000 tonnes per year of commercial and industrial waste; • Operations and maintenance – SUEZ will lead the delivery of a 20-year operations and maintenance service to the project, in partnership with HZI and New Energy; • Disposal services – SUEZ will provide best-practice collection and disposal services for fly ash residue and nonprocessible waste at its resource recovery facilities in Bibra Lake and North Bannister; and • Power offtake – SUEZ will purchase reliable renewable electricity generated by the project for its operational requirements across its business in the Perth area.

SUEZ will combine its international EfW experience with its market-leading network of assets and infrastructure in the state.

“The project is SUEZ’s first energy from waste development in Australia and we are very pleased to become a partner in this landmark transaction,” Mark Venhoek, CEO of SUEZ Australia & New Zealand, said on the company’s website. “This will significantly accelerate the improvement of waste treatment practices in the Perth region, as well

as reduce the city’s environmental footprint. “We are also delighted to expand our partnership with HZI with this new project and to develop new relationships with Tribe Infrastructure and New Energy.” The start of construction activities is planned to take place sometime in 2019.

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Biofuels, a forgotten solution to our national fuel reserve crisis ACCORDING to Bioenergy Australia, alarming reports continue to emerge regarding Australia’s low emergency fuel reserves and how it makes us ‘vulnerable’ and creates a critical national security issue. The organisation said that Australia is languishing behind other nations in fuel independence and security and has been named as the least prepared developed nation to deal with a crisis. Latest figures produced by the Department of Energy show stockpiles at the end of October 2018 were 27 days total petroleum products, 22 days of petrol and 17 days of diesel. Bioenergy Australia stated that the risks associated with transportation fuel security were first rung by air vicemarshal John Blackburn AO (Retired) in his NRMA reports in 2013 and 2014. In addition, it said that in 2015, a Senate Inquiry showed Australia was desperately short of its 90-day emergency fuel reserve supplies, required as a member of the International Energy Association (IEA). “With the decline in domestic refining in Australia and the closure of three refineries in the last decade, Australia has been left with four refineries in operation and the majority of fuel being imported,” said Shahan McKenzie, Bioenergy Australia CEO. “Australia would be exposed to catastrophic challenges should there be disruptions to the main shipping line to Australia. This could occur for a range of reasons, including geopolitical issues

in the region or a natural disaster. This is an issue of national security and biofuels must be considered as part of the solution.” The production of biofuels in Australia can help diversify the sources of transportation fuels and decrease Australia’s reliance on petroleum imports. A recent report from Queensland University of Technology showed that a simple E10 national mandate would represent an 18 per cent decrease on imported fuels. Biofuels are created from waste organic matter and can be blended with petroleum, diesel and jet fuel with positive impacts on the environment, reduced health impacts through reducing air particulate matter, increased jobs through regional development and enhanced fuel security through reduced reliance on imported fuels. Technology developments are now allowing 100 per cent replaceable fuels to be created from feed stocks such as municipal waste and sewerage waste. According to Bioenergy Australia, biofuels are not just relevant for land transport, as bio-jet is a significant area of growth globally. As an example, the demand for jet fuel is increasing annually in line with the international growth of the international aviation sector and consumer demand. Australia has consistently had to manage issues relating to aviation jet fuel supply and availability. As an example, in 2016 Melbourne Airport experienced a jet fuel shortage following

The production of biofuels in Australia can help diversify the sources of transportation fuels and decrease reliance on petroleum imports.

disruptions to jet fuel deliveries from a number of terminals across the city. Less than two million litres of aviation fuel were available at the country’s second busiest airport, meaning that less than 10 Boeing A380 planes had enough fuel for a long-haul flight. Currently, Australia imports approximately 93 per cent of its commercial jet fuel and we hold approximately 20 days of fuel in store. This should be considered a concern for the security, reliability and operations of our airports, industries, tourism and international image. An ideal solution to deal with our fuel security, supply and access would be for both sides of government to support the development of a local biofuels industry in Australia and commit to the

development of a National Strategy and roadmap to develop the industry. “Currently, Australia lags well behind other nations in production of biofuels and the receipt of its knock-on benefits,” McKenzie said. “A local biofuels industry could create over 8,000 direct and indirect jobs, contribute over $1.1 billion annually to regional communities, reduce particulate matter in our air by 26 per cent and reduce our reliance on imported fuel by 18 per cent. “Biofuels should be above politics. A local industry would create jobs, enhance fuel security, support waste reduction strategies and build stronger regional economies. It would also provide significant environmental and health benefits.”

Veolia buys out JV partner Cleanaway in Australia VEOLIA Australia and New Zealand recently completed a buyout of its joint venture with Cleanaway Waste Management, acquiring full ownership of Western Resource Recovery and Total Waste Management. Western Resource Recovery and its treatment arm – Total Waste Management – was established in 2000 as a joint venture between Veolia and Cleanaway Waste Management. Both have a large operational footprint, spanning Perth to Karratha, and provides waste management services to 3,500 retail and industrial customers. “Veolia is pleased to have completed the purchase and become the sole operator of two well-established local businesses, which offers a combination of trustworthiness and 14

reliability for our existing customers,” said Clay South, acting group general manager – Western Australia. “The liquid and hazardous waste treatment market is a key strategic growth area, and by wholly owning both operations, Veolia now offers a competitive liquid waste collection and treatment service in WA.” Since 11 December 2018, Veolia solely owns and manages the operations and management of six depots, including a liquid treatment plant and tank farm, across Perth (Welshpool), Geraldton, Kalgoorlie, Karratha, Port Hedland and Bunbury. Western Resource Recovery and Total Waste Management have 61 fulltime employees and fleet of 25 trucks. Veolia has been extending its footprint quickly in Western Australia.

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Veolia will now solely own and manage the operations and management of the businesses.

Just a few months prior, it was announced that Veolia will perform operations and maintenance services for Australia’s first waste to energy (WtE) plant in Australia located in

Western Australia. The plant, when completed in 2021 will start to generate approximately 40 MW of clean energy, which is enough to power 50,000 households.

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// News

Australians throw away 3.1m tonnes of food each year AN ALARMING three quarters of Australian adults (75 per cent) surveyed by FoodSaver are self-confessed foodwasters, with more than half (56 per cent) saying they throw out food on a weekly basis. The research has exposed the high volume of food wasted in Australian homes, with two thirds of Australians admitting they threw unused food out in 2018, while 36 per cent confess to letting food spoil. Bread and leafy vegetables were the top foods being thrown out or left to spoil in 2018. “It’s forgotten leftovers and spoiled fresh produce contributing the most to Australia’s food waste problem,” said Nicole Norton, FoodSaver Australia and New Zealand brand manager. “Aussies have good intentions when it comes to consuming their food, but modern life gets in the way. They simply don’t manage to consume it in time or are unaware of savvy ways to preserve food for longer.” The research found that the top excuses among respondents for throwing out food were food spoiling (69 per cent), food past the use-by date (48 per cent) and cooking too much food (25 per cent). Interestingly, while half of Australians are concerned about food waste in general, and around three quarters of us (72 per cent) feel guilty and frustrated about waste, only one third of Australians surveyed are concerned about their own personal food waste. Families with children surveyed are more likely to have experienced food wastage, with 73 per cent of those polled having thrown out unused food, versus 61 per cent of single and couple households surveyed. More than a third (36 per cent) of 35-54 years old surveyed admit to throwing away food on a weekly basis, followed by 18-34 and 55-69 both at 30 per cent.

Meanwhile, more than half of Australians (54 per cent) surveyed indicate they are extremely concerned about the food waste problem in Australia. In 2019, it’s expected that we’ll start to see a change in Australians’ attitude and behaviour when it comes to unnecessary wastage, with 51 per cent of those surveyed indicating they are motivated to reduce their food waste. The research discovered saving money was the main motivator, with people’s moral conscience being another reason for reducing food waste. It also found that respondents with no food wastage were driven by environmental factors, self-improvement and the desire to set a good example for their kids. Australians surveyed say they will start planning meals better (49 per cent), use current produce before buying new (38 per cent) and find better storage solutions (36 per cent) to prevent food wastage. Currently, almost half (48 per cent) of those surveyed store their produce loose in the crisper drawer, followed by plastic containers and bags in the fridge. Just nine per cent of respondents store fresh products in the fridge with vacuum sealed solutions, however, more than half (52 per cent) are considering using vacuum sealers. “While vacuum sealing foods at home is not widespread as other forms of food storage, there is increased interest from consumers as they are now commonly seeing vacuum sealed foods at their local supermarket,” Norton said. “Vacuum sealing preserves food and doesn’t just store it. We know that Australians are keen to consider food vacuum sealers in the future, particularly females, younger people and families with kids, who are always looking for savvy food and moneysaving solutions.”

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Two thirds of Australians who participated in the study admitted they threw unused food out in 2018.

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From the CEO’s desk Ministers meet for thewaste second IfEnvironment 2018 is described as thewill year Australia’s and time this year on 7 December, following the then first resource recovery industry was thrown into disarray, 2018 Meeting of Environment (MEM) in let 2019 be known as the year of Ministers real and measurable April, which was in part a response to the import action. restrictions driven by China’s National Sword Policy themonths effects policy stakeholder has had across Over theand last 12 andthis on various levels, the Australian waste and resource recovery (WARR) much has been discussed about the need for Australia to industry. Key decisions derived from the April MEM develop and grow its recycled remanufacturing capacity, as include: well as drive market demand for domestic remanufactured product. But if we take stock of the year that’s passed, • Reducing waste generation, endorsing a target have we as a country made great strides forward? Sadly, of 100% of Australian packaging being recyclable, the answer is no. compostable or reusable by 2025, and developing targets for recycled content in packaging. 2018 has put our essential industry in the spotlight and on our politicians’ agenda, and • community Increasing has Australia’s domestic recycling reaffirmed what we’ve long capacity. known – they want and support resource • recovery. IncreasingBut thethe demand for recycled products. responses, initiatives, and measures largely developed by state • governments Exploring opportunities to advance waste-to-energy waste-to-biofuels. are only short-term solutions. We are still and nowhere close to where we • need Updating the 2009 Waste year end, which will include circulara to be to both resolve ourStrategy waste andbyresource recovery challenges and develop economy principles. sustainable remanufacturing sector.

ItIndustry is time to stock and on examine what has been these hastake been working building capacity and isachieved poised forsince growth, butdecisions the slow were announced. Now, seven (7) months may not seem like a long time, however pace at which the government at all levels is moving, coupled with several state-based inpolicies that time seen markets close (Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam) and thatwe go have against our further shared vision of building a truly circular economy in Australia, ifmeans you are an operator under continued financial stress, seven (7) months could that operators continue to face significant, and in some cases, increased pressure. make or break you. Industry is working hard to find homes for resources that were previously exported; I Following ApriltoMEM, had abilities three (3) in with believe we the all want grow we our have processing to states managestep the 68 millionvarying tonnes degrees of financial assistance for industry (councils and operators). This recycled should of waste generated annually in Australia. But market demand for domestic be expected considering almost all states (except Queensland and Tasmania) have products is still sorely lacking - we are continuing to export materials only to later import access to significant waste levy income each year. On the eastern seaboard, Victoria recycled content - and this is where the Federal government needs to step in, and step has approximately millionfailure, in waste levy reserves the use Sustainability Fund in quickly to address$600 this market because it can andinmust different levers to and NSW raises more than $700 million per annum from the waste levy. There is grow both the demand and local market for Australian-made recycled products. Proper certainly no lack of funds that be reinvested essential industry. funding and implementation of can the National Waste into Policyour is key to moving forward but disappointingly, and in fact alarmingly, environment ministers failed to adopt the policy at Funding helpsMeeting but asofwe know, the money goes a much longer way with the December Environment Ministers. Government support and leadership, as well as appropriate policy levers. Ministers said at the time that while they agreed with approaches of the policy, further VICTORIA work needed to be done on the roadmap, and as such, implementation has been delayed. Victoria arguably beenthough the most and earnest in supporting industry What is has worse is that even our active essential industry contributes $15.5the billion to the post-China, with two (2) relief packages announced to support the recycling Australian economy, not to mention the significant levy reserves and payments made to industry, valued a total of $37committed million. The Government has also gone most states, thereatwas no funding to Victorian support the policy. above and beyond all others states by Recovery announcing it wouldoftake a leadership The Waste Management and Resource Association Australia (WMRR)role has inbeen creating market demand for recycled products. at the table from the outset and will continued to engage with all the environment ministers over the coming months. For Australia to grow its remanufacturing capacity, SOUTH AUSTRALIA Government announced a $12.4 million support package comprising $2 million of additional expenditure, $5 million additional funding for a loan scheme, together with targeted funding from the Green Industries SA budget. The Government has also offered grants for recycling infrastructure.

industry the Queensland Government embarked on the development investorshowever and industry require long-term certaintyhas that comes from a commitment by of a waste management strategy underpinned a waste disposal levy totoincrease governments to collaborate and develop onshore by markets, and importantly, support recycling and our recovery and create new jobs. The State will re-introduce a $70/ and work with essential industry. tonne landfill levy in March 2019. There are also strong attempts to use policy levers discounts andon exemptions) to incentivise the useitsofpace recycled WMRR(levy will continue to call the Federal government to quicken and getmaterial on with and make it cost competitive with virgin material. However, little has doneare: to the job, and to act on key positions that WMRR has consistently advocated been for, which establish new markets and Government has not taken the lead in the procurement • A national proximity principle, which will go a long way in providing certainty around of recycled material. There are grants available for resource recovery operations material flows, in turn encouraging investment. in• Queensland no monies haveapproach been allocated assist in 2018. This is A level playingalthough field, including a common to levies,to resource recovery orders troubling as Queensland rolled outdevelopment. its Container Refund Scheme on 1 November, and exemptions, as well as market which will stewardship likely impactand theextended cost andproducer revenueresponsibility models of the State’s– MRFs – as we • Product schemes strengthening have seen most recently in NSW. regulatory settings being the way forward, particularly for packaging, where a strong product stewardship model must be adopted. WESTERN AUSTRALIA • Procurement and market development – the Federal government has an opportunity ThetoWestern Australian Government set upspecifications a Waste Taskforce in direct response to demonstrate leadership by developing that utilise Australian-made therecycled China National Sword. As part of this announcement, the State Government products, as well as procuring Australian recycled products. urged all local councils toapproach, begin theincluding utilisation three (3)-bin system - red for • A whole-of-government the of usea of levers such as tax incentives. general waste, yellow recyclables and green for organic - over coming WMRR is urging thefor Federal government to consider how waste taxation and the importation years to reduce contamination. While this taskforce is a step in the right direction, incentives and/or disincentives can be used to encourage the use of domestic recycled wematerials. are yet to see any tangible results from it or any funding for industry. In October, the WA Waste Authority released its draft Waste Strategy to 2030, which comprises aChina’s comprehensive andPolicy detailed roadmap towards State’s shared of National Sword highlighted the gaping holethe in Australia’s resourcevision recovery becoming a sustainable, low-waste, circular economy. system and offered a rare opportunity to exponentially grow our onshore processing capacity, and along with that Australian jobs! We’ve lost 12 months with little to no COMMONWEALTH action, but we have 2019 to turn this around, because at our doorstep sits a 68 million Following MEM in April, Australia now new Federal Minister, tonne per the annum opportunity where 9.2 jobshas cana be created forEnvironment every 10,000 tonnes of Melissa Price, who in October reiterated to media MEM’s commitment to explore materials recycled (compared to 2.8 jobs for export). waste to energy as part of the solution to the impacts of China’s National Sword, which (EfW is not2019 a solution toaction recycling). The WMRRisistroubling determined to make a year of and we canCommonwealth only do what wehas do also backed the Australian Recycling Label and endorsed the National Packaging through the support and contribution of our members. To our members, thank you. Targets developed by the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO), which to date, incorporate industry in the development Lookinghas ahead, therefailed is littletodoubt that we are on the feedback cusp of change and this year, we of these targets. To the Commonwealth’s credit, there has been significant have changed our name to the Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association coordination reviewing Waste Policy,ofwith Department of of Australia toinbetter reflectthe andNational represent the needs our the growing and diverse Environment bringing together industry players and States during the review membership base. process. Over the next 12 months, we will continue to promote and advocate for our essential The updated Policy will noweconomic go before Environment Ministers on 7 December. The industry to drive investment, and job growth, as well as protect the community Commonwealth can play a key role – one that goes beyond the development of the and environment. WMRR hopes you will join in the conversation and continue to support National Waste Policy. WMAA is supportive of the Federal Government maximising the association in our important work. Membership renewal is now open so please ring the has, including importation powers, to maintain a strong, thelevers WMRRitnational office ontaxation (02) 8746and 5000 for more information. sustainable waste and resource recovery industry. Gayle Sloan AHEAD OF MEMOfficer 2 Chief Executive There may be movement across Australia, with some states doing better than others, but the consensus is, progress is still taking way too long. It is evident that there are funds available in almost all States to assist with developing secondary manufacturing infrastructure, however the only way that this will really happen is if there is government leadership around mandating recycled content in Australia now, not later.

NEW SOUTH WALES At first glance, New South Wales’ eye-watering $47 million recycling support package was heralded as the spark of hope industry needed. However, on closer inspection, the bulk of this package that was funded via the Waste Less, Recycle More initiative and therefore the waste levy, was not new, making it very difficult for stakeholders, including local government, to utilise the funds as they were already committed to other activities. Some of the criteria proposed by the NSW EPA also made it challenging for industry to apply to these grants. On the plus side, efforts are being made by the NSW Government to stimulate demand for recycled content through the intergovernmental agency working groups that have been established, though no tangible increase in demand or facilities have developed… Yet.

Voluntary schemes like the Used Packaging NEPM, under which APCO is auspiced, are not working. We have 1.6million tonnes of packaging waste in Australia, which needs to be used as an input back into packaging. Barriers to using recycled content in civil infrastructure must be identified and removed, and Government must lead in this field and prefer and purchase recycled material. A tax on virgin material should also be imposed as it is overseas. MEM must show strong leadership on this issue. Ministers have, since April, dealt directly with operators and councils that are under stress and we have a chance to create jobs and investment in Australia at a time when manufacturing is declining. Ministers have the opportunity to be leaders of today, not procrastinators – leaders of tomorrow and we are urging them to act and not just talk in December.

QUEENSLAND Unlike its neighbours, Queensland did not provide any financial support to

Gayle Sloan Chief Executive Officer

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Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence Awards //

A night to champion the waste industry’s leaders and innovators By Jan Arreza IN NOVEMBER last year, the waste industry gathered to honour the sector’s leaders and innovators, all of whom are rising to the unprecedented challenges facing the management and recovery of waste in Australia, during Inside Waste’s inaugural 2018 Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence Awards that was held in partnership with the Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association of Australia (WMRR). The awards night featured 50 facilities across 10 categories, all of

which championed the country’s most innovative waste industry businesses, individuals and projects. These industry experts come from across the sector, but share the vision of collaboration and innovation, as well as having a commitment to the sustainable and healthy growth of the country’s waste management and resource recovery sectors. Let’s now take a closer look at all the winners of the night and celebrate their efforts and innovative solutions to some of the pressing issues that we all face as an industry. iw

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// Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence Awards

Arcadis Executive of the Year: Doug Dean, CEO and MD, Veolia Australia FOR 27 YEARS, Doug Dean oversaw Veolia Australia and New Zealand’s operations as its CEO and managing director, up until his decision to step into retirement in June last year. Dean’s length of service is not just extraordinary in a day and age of constant change; he has also been instrumental in cementing Veolia’s position as a leading provider of environmental solutions in the region. When Dean started with Veolia in 1991 – then known as Collex – the organisation was a waste transport business with more than 500 employees. Today, Veolia is an industry leader, employing over 4,000 people across 250 locations throughout Australia and New Zealand. During his nearly three decadelong stint, Dean oversaw a period of sustained growth and expansion, steering the business through numerous successful acquisitions and joint ventures. As a result, Veolia has built its capability across the waste, water and energy sectors, and now serves an impressive array of industrial, municipal and commercial clients. “Compared to 30 years ago it is a very different industry. Technology is very different, the legislation implemented is different, and there’s definitely a lot more professionals in the industry,” Dean said. “When I first got into the waste industry it was a little bit on the rough side to be kind, but the professionalism has certainly come through and it is a very different environment to where it was when I started in the industry in 1989. I’m pleased with the professionalism of the industry nowadays – there are higher levels of safety and accountability in the sector, as well as on its treatment of those working within it, which I think is great. “I am also really happy with the number of women that are coming through and starting to get management and other positions of influence. I think that is a very good thing, particularly for this industry, which 30 years ago was very different and quite blokey. “It is quite an honour to be recognised by your peers for all of the work done during that time. This year will be my 30th year – if you count my time in SIMS Waste, which I headed before Veolia –

Doug Dean took out the Executive of the Year award at the inaugural Inside Waste Awards.

and three decades in the industry is a good stint.” One of the many professional and personal highlights for Dean over the past 27 years has been around the transformation of Veolia as a business. For example, in 1998, when Veolia engaged in its first indigenous employment partnership for the construction of the Botany Transfer Station in NSW. This made the organisation one of the first corporate entities to provide handson employment opportunities for indigenous Australians. Another highlight was with the acquisition of Middlemass Industrial Services, Aqualine Australia and Vactech from 1998-2000, which expanded the business into industrial services, working with heavy industries including mining, refining and off-shore exploration and processing. In 2005, Veolia established the Veolia Mulwaree Trust – a community engagement initiative offering a unique model of collaboration and investment in a regional community. More recently in 2014, Veolia embarked on its biggest transformation to date by combining its three business lines – waste, water and energy – into a single business. But if you were to ask Dean what his

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biggest achievement is, he would say it was all the work done 250km south of Sydney at Woodlawn. Under his watch, Veolia embarked on an ambitious plan to turn an abandoned mine into a bioreactor landfill, with purpose-built rail transportation to deliver waste from Sydney. A highly technical and complex project, it was delivered by Veolia’s team of local and global specialists, but also required robust political engagement to create a new regulatory environment. “For me personally, Woodlawn has been the biggest achievement during my time, but we’ve also achieved great things in our landfills in other states like Queensland and South Australia, as well on our liquid treatment plants across the country,” Dean said. “Veolia has grown significantly over the years, from employing a hundred people to now having over 4,000 people working for the company. We’ve also branched out to industrial services and other areas that we weren’t working in before. “Australia is a great place to work in and the opportunities here are quite enormous. It has definitely been a very enjoyable career over the past three decades.” Despite stepping down from his

position as CEO and MD, Dean will remain with Veolia in a consulting capacity, providing strategic advice and governance support for the organisation, as needed. Danny Conlon was appointed as Veolia’s new CEO and managing director in July last year. He will continue to oversee the continued growth and success of the company’s expansive portfolio of waste, water and energy operations. “I still want to give back and I want to keep my involvement in the sector for as long as I can. I don’t know what the timeframe is after you retire, but I believe I still have about three or four years left to do all of that,” Dean said. “Other than that, I am going to be spending more time with my family, especially with my five grandkids. I also have a boat that wouldn’t recognise me if I walked up to it, so I will be spending a bit more time on that with a rod in one hand and a glass of chardonnay in the other. “I wish Danny all the best. It is a very dynamic and complicated industry to work in, but there are dozens of great opportunities and a lot of great new technologies available to be able to really make a mark in the sector.” iw

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Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence // WasteAwards and Resource // Recovery Excellence Awards

Veolia Circular Economy Award/ Outstanding Facility Award:

Plastic Forest, GreenMongrel/Albury Recycling Facility Cable cover load awaiting shipment.

BEING THE first company in the world to achieve industrial-scale dry recovery of contaminated plastic films, Plastic Forests are closing the loop on this problem waste stream by upcycling it into a range of GreenMongrel garden and landscape products, as well as electrical cable cover and resins for remanufacturing. Plastic film is a problem waste with less than 14 per cent recycled globally. Contaminated plastic film is even more challenging due to food residues, ink or other contaminants being present, which can often make recycling impossible. Years of research and millions of dollars have been invested into the development of the dry-cleaning technology involved. The proprietary technology and techniques used at the processing facility are world-leading, with ongoing upgrades and expansion planned moving forward. “It really does boil down to a really simple philosophy – we have one planet with limited resources, and we should be making the absolute best out of what we have. Plastic is enormously valuable, and it is mental to have something that sells for $2,000 to $10,000 a tonne, to use it only once before it gets thrown away and ends up in landfill,” said David Hodge, Plastic Forests managing director. “We recover steel because it is easy to find it with a magnet. We recover

aluminium because it is expensive to manufacture, so it has a high inherent cost. But for some strange reason plastic film is enormously difficult to recycle because they are very complex, often having more than one polymer in them.” Plastic Forests have partners across the food and beverage, agriculture, technology, construction and landscaping industries. The company identifies suitable plastic film streams at the source, and collaborates with its partners to achieve efficient collection, storage and transportation to its processing facility. Plastic Forests’ innovative drycleaning process transforms contaminated plastic films into a range of sustainable sheet products, whilst enabling its multi-national customers to meet their environmental ‘Zero Waste to Landfill’ goals. The plastic film is recycled into resin, which is then sold back into the plastics industry or manufactured by Plastic Forests into a range of sustainable GreenMongrel products, including underground cable cover, garden edging and root barriers. The company’s GreenMongrel Electrical Cable Cover is currently being used Australia-wide due to its quality, reliability and price. Recycled Garden Edging is the thickest on the market and is strong, flexible and suitable for versatile uses. Also, the company’s Root

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Barrier is a strong, 1.1mm solid thick product, not a thin embossed sheet, which provides superior protection from roots. All products are monitored regularly throughout the manufacturing process to ensure a consistent, high-quality product is being produced. Each of these products provides a competitive or superior alternative to those made with virgin materials, whilst rescuing plastic film from landfill and creating a circular economy. One tonne of recycled plastics saves about 5,774kWh of energy, 2,593 litres of oil, 98 million British Thermal Units of energy, and 22 cubic-metres of landfill space over the use of virgin resin. “We had to do a lot of planned upgrades, so when we moved the facility from North Victoria across to Albury, we bought additional equipment and we redesigned the production line so that we can get a better and cleaner output. It really is hard work technically recovering resources back from plastic

films,” Hodge said. “We have enormous capacity to have many thousands of tonnes more than we are currently doing, but we need the end markets and the offtakes in place. “You would need massive economies of scale, because you are competing against low-cost energy and lowcost labour coming out of Vietnam and Malaysia. Even though there is a big demand going back up to China, they just don’t really want to pay the Australian wages and environmental and electricity rates.” The company will be partnering with many of its multi-national clients who are keen to complete the circular economy by purchasing products, such as bin liners manufactured from their own plastic film. Plastic Forests clients can use these products in their own business and also offer them to their employees who are keen to make a sustainable, environmental choice in the products they buy. iw

The plastic film is then recycled into resin.

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Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence // WasteAwards and Resource // Recovery Excellence Awards

Young Professional of the Year: Daragh Maher, director, WRITE Solutions

Daragh Maher during the Inside Waste Awards Ceremony.

DESPITE BEING quite new in the sector, Daragh Maher, consultant at Write Solutions Australia, has worked hard to become part of changing waste management and delivering sustainable options for the hospitality, food manufacturing, schools and other business sectors in Perth. Maher has worked in the industry for six years and his performance has already created an environmental breakthrough and solution many in the sector have been looking for. Setting up a new business and as a director of WRITE Solutions Australia since January 2018, Maher has set new standards in the waste industry and is leading the way in how waste is now being handled, with the prime mission of diverting as much waste away from landfill. Partnering up with organic packaging group Biopak, Maher launched a closedloop waste solution in Australia’s first

comprehensive composting service for takeaway foodservice. Designed to divert food scraps and foodservice packaging from landfill, the service had diverted over 120 tonnes of food waste from landfill in the first five months alone. The organics service allows customers to dispose of used coffee cups and Biopak compostable takeaway food packaging in specially designed collection bins at their local cafes or workplaces. The service will take all food scraps (including meat, dairy and confectionary), paper products such as napkins, paper bags and straws, and other organic waste such as coffee grounds. The special compost bins will be collected weekly and sent to commercial facilities to be composted – and in only eight weeks, they will be turned into nutritious soil compost for gardens and farms.

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The service already has customers like Allpress Espresso, Boatshed Market, Canteen Trigg, several local cafes, the Esplanade Hotel Fremantle, and a major financial institution, and this continues to grow each week due to Maher’s continued efforts and drive in this space. “We now got about a hundred businesses in Perth collecting their food waste in compostable packaging, which then gets collected every single week,” Maher said. “The response that we have gotten from the general public and how supportive they have been has been amazing and what we’ve been able to achieve from a food waste and diversion point of view has really blown me away. To be honest, that’s really been one of my biggest achievements because we’re really changing people’s perceptions of waste and how to dispose of it.”

Maher has led this initiative from the start and has developed a new way of thinking along the way. He has shown that it is no longer just about collecting waste and dumping it into a hole, it’s about changing the mindset of businesses and individuals in order to do the right thing and get the best outcomes. And the organics side of things are just the beginning. He recently started working with the WA Police to collect all the breathalyser straws used – around 1.5 million a year – that was currently going to landfill but is now being ground up and made into plastic farming posts for the state. “All of our work allows us to change people’s perceptions of waste because we are actively showing people how we can take a certain product, and instead of it ending up in landfill, we can actually add another value to it and turn it into another useful resource,” Maher concluded. iw

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Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence Awards //

Veolia Circular Economy Award: Downer, Reconophalt DOWNER HAS partnered with resource recovery and recycling companies Red Group and Close the Loop, and Hume City Council to set a new benchmark in sustainability, with the recent construction of the first road in Australia using Reconophalt – an innovative asphalt product that contains a combination of soft plastics and glass. Downer took the lead role in the repurposing of the soft plastics and glass in asphalt for road construction, which created a sustainable, cost-effective solution that has improved performance characteristics over conventional asphalt. The Australian-first product reduces the amount of virgin material required for asphalt production by up to 35 per cent. The technology used in processing soft plastics and glass into asphalt mix relies largely on existing asphalt processing infrastructures. Downer’s Reconophalt mix incorporates approximately 530,000 plastic bags, 168,000 glass bottles, toner from 12,500 used printer cartridges and 134 tonnes of reclaimed asphalt pavement in a kilometre of road (two lanes). “We are really pleased with it – it’s been three years of hard work and investment in research and development. It is a step change for the industry, and we are delighted to be on the front foot of that change, driving the new approach in a traditional industry with a product that adds value,” said Jim Appleby, general manager of Downer’s Reconomy business. “We substituted some of the sand with high quality glass fines, we substituted some of the polymer with what people would deem as waste plastics, and we produced an asphalt with improved fatigue life. This makes the product last longer, as fatigue is one of the main things that damages asphalt over time. We have a product that ticks a lot of boxes sustainability-wise and performance-wise. “We’ve always been sustainabilityfocused at Downer and sometime ago, we made some very significant investments in new asphalt technology, which we perceived as the latest and greatest in the market, and which was configured to reuse materials rather than just focus

Reconophalt paving in Craigieburn, Hume City Council.

on virgin materials. “And as far back as 2015, we designed and demonstrated an asphalt that was 99 per cent recycled, and that formed the basis for our introduction of different recycled materials into the production process, while making sure to never compromise the quality and longevity of the product we were making.” The soft plastics used in Reconophalt production are sourced sustainably via Downer’s partnership with Red Group, which operates soft plastic and glass collection points in many large supermarkets across the country. Red Group then passes these materials to Close the Loop, which then combines both soft plastic and waste toner into an asphalt additive at its Somerton facility. Once combined to achieve the desired properties, the plastic/toner additive can be incorporated into the traditional asphalt production process at any modern plant with minimal equipment changes. Rather than sequestering soft plastics to landfill, where they may present a hazard to future generations, soft plastics melt effectively into the bitumen

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used to bind the asphalt together. The finished product not only remains 100 per cent recyclable, it also improves pavement performance and durability. Initial results indicate up to 65 per cent improvement in fatigue life of the pavement, as well as superior resistance to deformation and extreme temperatures. Reconophalt meets all the requirements as dictated by state road specifications and its performance continues to improve with further trialling and R&D as understanding of the product increases. The product also adds value by displacing conventional polymers and bitumen that would ordinarily incur significant environmental costs in both their manufacture and shipping. The financial success of Reconophalt has been planned and achieved by addressing the security of the raw materials, the demand for the finished product – both current and projected, the scalability of the product, and how costs and price can compete against virgin material-based markets. These factors maximise Reconophalt’s probability of financial success and

make it an ideal choice for enhancing road sustainability and longevity. As such, Appleby said that Reconophalt has tremendous potential to play a pivotal role in achieving a circular economy. “We can’t just sit on our hands and expect everybody else to do the heavy lifting. Industry wants to play its part and what we hope to do is show a really traditional industry that there are different approaches to take that can achieve a greater outcome,” Appleby said. “We aim to give our customers – the engineers of Australia who diligently look after our networks of roads and infrastructure – a product where they don’t have to compromise on their expectations, and Reconophalt definitely performs better than the traditional product that it replaced.” Successful Reconophalt trials have already been conducted by Hume City Council, Sutherland Shire Council, City of Onkaparinga and Kingborough Council and ongoing testing is taking place to better understand how the pavement behaves throughout its life. iw

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Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence // WasteAwards and Resource // Recovery Excellence Awards

Excellence in a Government and Administrative program: MWRRG, Metro Fund ADMINISTERED BY the Metropolitan Waste and Resource Recovery Group (MWRRG), the Metro Fund was a $5.5 million Victorian government initiative that ran from 2011 to 2017 and aimed to assist councils in metropolitan Melbourne to implement best practice waste collection and management systems. With the volume of waste being generated by the state continuing to grow and valuable resources continuing to be sent to landfill, councils today face a range of challenges such as resource and capacity constraints, as well as the emergence of problems within multi-unit developments, which are difficult to implement resource recovery systems in. That is why there was a clear need for a program such as the Metro Fund, which helps councils and communities address the problem of, and challenges associated with waste generation and resource recovery. The six objectives of the Metro Fund were to: • Support best practice waste management solutions to avoid, reduce and reuse waste being generated through the municipal solid waste (MSW) stream; • Maximise economic value and environmental outcomes for local government and the community; • Deliver coordinated metropolitanwide approaches in waste management, waste reduction and resource recovery; • Improve collection arrangements, material sorting and source separation systems; • Pilot new approaches that have potential broader applications or provide models for other councils to use; and • Complete an evaluation of the Fund to assess its performance in achieving its objectives. “We could see that funding was required to really help local government drive some of the policies and strategic direction that we were putting on the table, with regards to our strategic

Metro fund supported projects have pioneered new technologies and practices in the sector.

planning. We really needed some money to support those initiatives and to enable local government to really test drive some of those initiatives,” said Rob Millard, MWRRG CEO. “It’s unlike other grant programs. The group really provided high-level operational and project management guidance to support the councils. We also encouraged the councils to work together on like-for-like projects and share knowledge across the sector.” Metro Fund-supported projects have pioneered new technologies and practices and has generated a network of projects that support and build off one another, and the organisations and individuals involved has continued to benefit from those connections. The Metro Fund program was delivered to budget but achieved scale beyond it. The initial $5.5 million of funding delivered $10.3 million in impact, through matched grants and other partnership arrangements. The Fund has supported 33 local government projects through competitive grants and a further 15 MWRRG-led strategic projects with benefits across the metropolitan region.

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Of the $5.5 million, approximately $4.9 million was invested in these projects and $0.6 million was allocated to Metro Fund program governance. The fund leveraged an additional $6.6 million in cash and in-kind contributions from councils and partners. The MWRRG provided a further $1.6 million in in-kind administration and project management. This supported 15 infrastructure projects, 18 R&D and demonstration projects, 29 projects with elements of behaviour change and capability building, and five innovation projects spanning a range of areas. “It has been one of our really significant success stories. It’s been a fantastic partnership with the sector, with local government in particular, and it has really driven not only diversion of landfill over the years but has also driven initiatives in resource recovery, having supported 48 projects during that period of time,” Millard said. “A great example was the Degraves Street project, which we developed with Melbourne City Council, and was really a flagship project for the fund.

We implemented a digester to enable FOGO collection from a number of restaurants in the area to really drive food recovery in the commercial and industrial (C&I) sector. The project showed how we could work in the C&I sector and the restaurant industry, as well as with councils, to drive food diversion. “We also looked at ways of driving the recovery of polystyrene and we initiated a project to develop drop-off facilities in order to drive the recovery of this waste stream through local government transfer stations. This has been a major problem product for the industry, and the project really showed that if we worked together with industry and provided a sustainable home for the material we recovered, then we were able to bring about a closed-loop arrangement in that sector.” In total, approximately 40,472 tonnes of materials were diverted from landfill as a result of the Metro Fund. An estimated 6,284 tonnes of materials are expected to be diverted annually because of infrastructure improvements through the Fund. iw

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Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence // WasteAwards and Resource // Recovery Excellence Awards

Operational Excellence Award: Gunther Neumann, REMONDIS, Lake Macquarie Organics Resource Recovery Facility LAST YEAR, REMONDIS Australia and Lake Macquarie City Council (LMCC) took a significant step in the war against waste with the recent opening of its organics processing facility at the Awaba Waste Management Facility, which has the capability to convert 44,000 tonnes per year of organic waste into compost and soil amendment products. REMONDIS was selected to finance, design, build and operate a composting facility with the ability to sustainably process the FOGO from residents and local businesses across a 30-year planning horizon. The budget for the entire project was in excess of $10 million. In the multi-million-dollar Organics Resource Recovery Facility (ORRF), food and garden organics (FOGO) will be recycled and transformed into highquality compost products for reuse on parks, grounds and sporting fields. The facility is the centrepiece of the LMCC’s new three-bin waste management system. With the new weekly FOGO service commencing and the change from a fortnightly to a weekly collection cycle, the new composting operation will process approximately 50 per cent more FOGO annually. This will

give council, the residents and its businesses financial long-term security and an environmentally-friendly and sustainable recycling solution. The high-tech facility comprises a unique hybrid model of in-vessel and mobile aerated floor systems and boasts a number of Australian firsts, including: • A fully automated tunnel composting system to pasteurise food waste in up to two weeks, coupled with mobile aerated floor finishing to complete the composting process; and • A convenient automatic, cashless weighbridge system that will give users access to the facility with the swipe of a card, enabling fast and accurate transactions. “It was a big year last year – we finished the construction of our composting facility on-time and under-budget without any incidents or accidents, while undertaking operations of fortnightly GO and construction of the FOGO facility at the same time,” said Gunther Neumann, REMONDIS Australia branch manager – Lake Macquarie ORRF. “The facility’s setup is an Australian-first in that it combines the tunnels with the mobile aerated floor technology, which allows us to

improve on the product quality and environmental controls. “Another innovation we have is around our weighbridge, which is the most innovative in the Australian waste sector. It is an unmanned, fullyautomated weighbridge that allows us to receive FOGO from both large commercial customers, as well as from smaller vehicles belonging to our residents. “We try to be as innovative as possible because this is a facility for the future and it’s designed for a 30year lifespan, so we wanted it to be at the forefront of innovation right from start.” During the design and construction of the facility, the project faced multiple challenges unique to the site, including no existing town water, sewer, high voltage electricity, landline or internet connections, no sufficient mobile phone reception on many parts of the site, strict mine design rules, endangered flora and fauna, ongoing ingress of groundwater encountered during earthworks construction, heavy storm periods and much more. All of these challenges were resolved, and innovative solutions were implemented. As an example, REMONDIS created an industry unique highly

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sophisticated water balance model, which is now used by consultants and the EPA to model rainfall scenarios at different composting plants. Another example is the implementation of the unmanned and cashless weighbridge. “We want to showcase our abilities to the recycling industry in Australia. REMONDIS operates over 60 composting facilities in Germany and its neighbouring countries, and we wanted to bring all of the innovative technology from there over to the Australian market,” Neumann said. “We are one of Europe’s largest and most innovative recycling companies and we want to also drive that innovation here in Australia. We want to see more of these facilities in Australia as we see a significant opportunity in the FOGO space for councils, as well as for commercial businesses. “The food waste collection is one of the key target areas for REMONDIS in Australia. Our next step will be to roll out our food waste collection for businesses in the Hunter area, before rolling out similar facilities and systems all across the country. “We also need to be more focused on recycling materials from the commercial and industrial (C&I) sector as we believe there is a significant amount of resources that could be recycled out of C&I waste, such as food waste. It will be a win-win situation for all involved.” REMONDIS are currently working with several interested parties on trialling composting compostable items such as compostable coffee cups, cutleries and tableware. Many restaurants and coffee cup shops have already approached REMONDIS and are extremely keen in this service. REMONDIS are also committed to the continued engagement with the community in regard to environmental awareness and education programs. The company will be hosting various ongoing community engagement events on site to facilitate a sense of ownership and to educate the local community in environmental awareness. iw

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// Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence Awards

Outstanding Facility Award:

Contract Resources, Karratha Mercury Waste Treatment Facility WITH THE delivery of the $20 million Karratha Mercury Waste Treatment Facility, Contract Resources aimed to fully eliminate offshore disposal of Australian mercury wastes with an economically and environmentally sound alternative. One of the most hazardous wastes to deal with, mercury previously had to be stockpiled or exported overseas to Switzerland for treatment due to the lack of processing options here in Australia. With the addition of the new plant – the largest hazardous waste recycling and processing facility in the southern hemisphere – Australia now has the capability to treat all of its mercury contaminated waste in-house. “We are a company that is very heavily focused and driven towards innovation and our involvement with this project was in response to a known problem of our clients, which is the mercury contamination of by-products created as a result of oil and gas,” said Adam Machon, Contract Resources CEO. “After we personally identified and understood the problem, we conducted a global search until we acquired the innovative technology that we’ve installed in Karratha, which has now been commissioned. “We were also able to secure Woodside as a foundation client and their support has effectively helped our confidence levels in making the investment, and they continue to be a very valuable client of ours.” The plant is a multi-step process that first heats the waste under a vacuum,

The Contract Resources team with senator Mathias Cormann.

extracting and separating all the volatile materials in the waste (water, oil and liquid mercury), leaving a dry cake-like material. This material is then processed in a second plant at high temperature to break down the remaining mercury compounds in the waste and extract them as liquid mercury. The final step is purification of the mercury through distillation into a material that is suitable for dental amalgam production. As well as providing the most sustainable mercury waste solution in Australia, the plant itself has virtually no emissions. All mercury treatment is conducted in a negative pressure environment with all air being scrubbed before release to the atmosphere and

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water is treated before being evaporated in onsite ponds. Up to 75 per cent of the original waste material can be recycled and reused and the plant is sized to handle up to 3,500 tonnes of mercury waste per year. This would enable all current and projected future Australian oil and gasrelated mercury waste to be processed in this one facility. “It is all about responsibly recycling all of the by-products of the process and doing it in a manner that is 100 per cent honest and ethical. We are excited to be part of that and the support that we secured from Woodside was certainly a result of our company’s credentials and culture,” Machon said. “We handle and support petrochemical clients with mercury handling more than any other contractor in Australia. We have a significant business in Australia, New Zealand and the Middle East, and this is a strategic asset, which complements the existing work that we already do for those clients. “We are also focused on the next generation of problems that we see in the petro-chemical sector, and we are starting to heavily invest in R&D. One

of the really exciting things we are currently working on is the ability to enter reactors without personnel and we are currently investing in proprietary technology for that. “The company mantra has always been around innovation, as well as being that company that clients can call on to help solve these difficult problems that they face reliably and responsibly. We are very focused on making sure that whatever we do for our clients we do it really well.” The plant is conveniently located within close proximity of the largest source of this type of waste in Australia, and, therefore, transport risks are significantly reduced. The plant design is also sufficiently flexible to have the capability to deal with wastes from other industries. Contract Resources will continue to work with regulators, other waste industry providers and customers to provide innovative solution for Australia’s mercury waste issues. The potential is also there to deal with other mercury wastes such as sludge, batteries, light globes and mercury contaminated materials. iw

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Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence Awards //

SUEZ Outstanding Local Government Award (Metro):

Lake Macquarie City Council, three-bin service The new service will reduce the amount of waste going to landfill by an estimated 17,000 tonnes a year and offset increasing annual waste disposal costs.

IN JULY 2018, the City of Lake Macquarie embarked on a new era of kerbside waste services with the introduction of a greener three-bin system, adding a weekly Food + Garden = Green kerbside service to the mix. With the new food and garden organics (FOGO) service, households are now able to put all food scraps, including leftovers, meat, seafood, dairy, bones, fruit and vegetable scraps into the new green bin, reducing the amount to waste going to landfill from general waste bins by as much as onethird. Under the new system, green bins are emptied out every week, while the red garbage bins and yellow recycling bins are now emptied out fortnightly. The new service will reduce the amount of waste going to landfill by an estimated 17,000 tonnes a year and offset increasing annual waste disposal costs. Once collected, the waste is then taken to the Lake Macquarie Organics Resource Recovery Facility (ORRF) and processed into Australian Standard compost, which will then be used on gardens, parks and in agriculture. “It’s absolutely fantastic to be

recognised by our peers and it’s been a great collaboration from a large number of stakeholders. It’s just really pleasing to see this kind of resource recovery initiative getting off the ground, being implemented so effectively, and then being recognised within industry itself – we are very proud,” said Alice Howe, manager planning and sustainability at Lake Macquarie. “The initiative is a partnership between REMONDIS, Solo Resource Recovery – who are our collection contractor, Mesh Engagement – who have worked on the engagement program with us, and Source Separation Systems – who are a local company based in our local government area. “We introduced a garden organic service back in 2013 and that was very well-received by the local community, and since then we have been preparing the development of our composting facility with our partner REMONDIS, and really working closely with our community to prepare them for the changes to our service.” To test the effectiveness of its new service, Council undertook a 66-day trial of the green three-bin service in 2016,

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which received positive feedback from participating households and saw more than two tonnes of food waste diverted from landfill. Once the service was implemented, Council supplied each household with a Starter Kit, which included a food scraps bin for their kitchen benchtop, a roll of compostable bags and full-service instructions to help residents with the transition. “We made a point of delivering every household a food scraps bin and some compostable bags to help with the separation of waste in the kitchen and make it easier for them to fill the green bins,” Howe said. “That was a really important engagement opportunity as it was something really tangible for the community to get a hold of to help them adapt better to the changes.” This initiative has been a part of the Waste Strategy that council has developed over the past decade to achieve the city’s waste avoidance and resource recovery targets. Council has taken a 360-degree approach, which includes ongoing diversion of recyclables and organic waste from landfill, development of a new processing facility for FOGO, expanding its landfill capacity, and an ongoing education program for the community. “We are aiming for a 75 per cent diversion of waste from landfill – we were sitting at about 20-odd per cent

before we introduced our FOGO service and now, we are sitting at around 65 per cent. So, we have made some really substantial gains in that space,” Howe said. “We are absolutely committed to recovering resources, but we would also like to see the development of more regional processing facilities, and we are working with our local government partners, in Hunter particularly, to look at all of that.” Council would also like to establish more effective demand for the recycled products that are coming out of its kerbside bins, in a bid to really closethe-loop on the waste cycle within the city. “And we have done that for FOGO – we now have a standard compost product that is being reused in gardens, parks and in agriculture locally. We would also like to extend that thinking to our yellow bins kerbside collections,” Howe added. “We’ve had such a fantastic uptake in FOGO collections, and it has exceeded our expectations. We have very low contaminations – we are currently under 0.6 per cent, which is a really outstanding result and a tribute to the community in terms of how effectively they have adopted to the new service.” This project is supported by the Environmental Trust as part of the NSW EPA’s Waste Less, Recycle More initiative, funded from the Waste Levy. iw

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// Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence Awards

SUEZ Outstanding Local Government Award (Rural or Regional): Albury City Council

Andrea Baldwin, team leader waste management, Albury City Council.

IN A bid to ensure that its landfill would remain operational well into the future, Albury City Council established a goal to halve the amount of waste going into the Albury Waste Management Centre (AWMC) by 2020. To achieve this, council created the Halve Waste comprehensive education campaign, invested in novel diversion infrastructure at AWMC, and rolled out a three-bin food and garden organics (FOGO) system. In 2009, AWMC was bearing 100 per cent of the region’s local waste – both residential and commercial – and was facing imminent closure due to increasing amounts of waste being sent to landfill and the subsequent estimate that the landfill would be full by 2020. This is what led council to respond in the way that they have. “We have one landfill facility to accommodate our entire region and this all came about because the landfill’s life was pretty minimal and reducing quite quickly as we service a population of about 170,000,” said Andrea Baldwin, team leader waste management, Albury City Council. “At the time, we were taking in about 200,000 tonnes of waste each year and it was fairly quickly recognised that space was going to run out unless we made some significant changes, both infrastructure-wise, and in terms of educating the community.”

One of the key things introduced was the Halve Waste – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle initiative, which is a public awareness and education campaign developed to engage the community in efforts to reduce waste and increase recycling in the greater Albury region. At AWMC, Albury City also invested in a suite of infrastructure to divert wastes from landfill. Infrastructure has included a community recycling centre (CRC), an upcycle centre, dedicated organics, tyre and steel drop-off points and a push-pit. The most recent innovative addition is a novel approach using a system of three weighbridges on site. The series of weighbridges starts at the entry to the centre where all the vehicles are weighed, then directed to proceed through the recycling centre – past drop-off points such as the CRC, green waste area, steel and tyre collection points – before being weighed again at the entrance to the push pit. Vehicles are weighed again at the exit, which allows AWMC to distinguish between what is recycled and what is landfilled and charge each customer accordingly. With the implementation of Halve Waste, and together with the infrastructure investment, council has so far achieved: • 44 per cent reduction in municipal solid waste buried at landfill;

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• 35 per cent reduction in waste buried at landfill; • 59 per cent of waste diverted on-site; • 67,499 tonnes of organic waste diverted from landfill; • A contamination rate with organic waste that is close to 0.6 per cent, which is one of the lowest in the state; and • 22 per cent increase in organic waste tonnages since its inception in 2015, demonstrating residents have transitioned well with the changes and continue to improve as they become more familiar with the threebin system. “Education is key. Given a little bit of knowledge and information, the community was made aware of the impacts of the changes and how it will affect them in the long-term,” Baldwin said. “That’s been very powerful, because if we don’t make the change, then we will have no facility and we will be paying quite a significant increase in cost for waste disposal in the future. It has been quite a bit of a culture change. “As we get closer to our goal of halving the waste going to landfill, we will probably revisit that goal and make it a lot harder again, probably raising the goal to 75 per cent reduction of waste going to landfill.” The range of the campaigns change yearly to focus on topical issues such as soft plastics, commercial food waste diversion and specific contamination issues, as they arise. Halve Waste has

educated over 13,300 people across school children, community groups and businesses. “We are making some really positive gains regionally to support our community. We have been really proactive in making sure that we are minimising waste to landfill and finding homes for waste types, rather than just sending them to landfill,” Baldwin said. “We are also making sure that we are addressing the future needs of the region and looking into bringing in new strategies and programs, as well as on what we can do better in terms of our waste management processes. And lately, it’s been mostly around plastics, as it has been a very hot topic in the public space at the moment. We already do some expanded polystyrene recycling, where we melt it down ourselves and then export it overseas direct. “We are looking at construction and demolition waste, too and we are developing a materials recovery facility – set to open in 2020 – to process things like concrete rubble, bricks, engineered woods, timbers, steels, insulation and plasterboard, while making sure that we have places for all of that to be reprocessed. “It all comes around to having that circular economy and making sure that we are using these waste types for a secondary use and finding another use for them, rather than landfilling.” iw

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Policy //

NSW EPA jeopardises future resource recovery investments By John Cook and Ron Wainberg ON OCTOBER 2018, the NSW EPA released the Mixed Waste Organic Outputs (MWOO) – Regulatory Change, withdrawing the Resource Recovery Order and Exemption to end the application of processed organic material derived from residual municipal waste to land. The order and exemption were revoked with 24 hours’ notice and with immediate effect, despite the use of this material being highly regulated and restricted to mine site rehabilitation, forestry and broad acre agriculture, with strict application limits in all cases to date. After encouraging significant investment in developing a practical means of diverting this material from landfill disposal, this unplanned, unheralded, and in the view of waste industry veterans, unnecessary change in waste policy has thrown the industry into disarray. The EPA is of the view that their research concluded there are limited agricultural or soil benefits from applying mixed waste organics. This research has not been made publicly available for an independent peer review, but rather has been reviewed by a Technical Advisory Committee appointed by the EPA, whose members have not been identified. The lack of transparency in the process is extremely concerning and the conclusion highly suspect insofar as MWOO has been applied for a number of years with reportedly good results, and industry has been conducting periodic testing of all outputs for compliance purposes. The EPA has also expressed concern regarding the following: • Physical contamination with small pieces of plastic; • Physical contamination with fine pieces of glass; • The presence of heavy metals; and • The presence of persistent chemical contaminants, principally brominated fire retardants. These are realistic concerns, however, they have also been known for many years and limits were set by the conditions of the exemption. Research carried out for the EPA in 28

2009, identified the flame retardants as being present at similar levels in both MWOO and compost derived from source separated organics – at levels that were orders of magnitude less than in house dust. At the time of the earlier research, heavy metal concentrations were to have been managed in a similar manner to the application of biosolids to land. Meanwhile, glass fines may stir up emotions, but in reality, are equivalent to sand. Plastics are an issue, however, if levels are now deemed to be unacceptable, industry should at least be given the opportunity to develop engineering solutions to remove them. The authors of this article are not aware of any evidence of harm to the environment from the application of MWOO derived from mixed waste. They were intimately involved in extensive research into the chemical and physical attributes of composts derived from household waste from 2006 to 2009. This research appears to have been completely ignored in the current EPA report. Note that this earlier research was jointly funded by the EPAs of NSW, Victoria and WA, as well as the waste industry. It was at a relatively smallscale, cost approximately $350,000, and coordinated by the Waste Management Association of Australia (WMAA) as an example of a collaborative approach to developing waste regulation. Two independent reports resulting from the research provided the basis for regulators to set maximum limits that the resource recovery industry must meet to ensure their products pose no long-term threat to human or environmental health. The NSW EPA was represented on the steering group for this earlier research. In 2010, discussions were underway between the NSW EPA and the waste industry to conduct further research. Ultimately, the EPA decided to fund this research themselves and unfortunately, no joint collaborative steering committee with the industry was put in place. Of concern in the information presented so far is: • What were the terms of reference for the EPA’s research? • Who was on the EPA’s Technical Advisory Committee, what was

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If NSW is to cease recovering organics materials from mixed waste, more than 300,000 tonnes of waste would no longer be diverted from landfill.

their expertise, and what were the Committee’s terms of reference? • Was any form of independent peer review undertaken? • Who undertook the research, and were they independent or did they have a pre-conceived notion of the outcome? • Was the earlier research conducted in 2006-09 referenced or acknowledged in the EPA report? If NSW is to cease recovering organics materials from mixed waste, more than 300,000 tonnes of waste would no longer be diverted from landfill. This would occur at a time when around one million tonnes of waste will (finally) no longer be sent to Queensland for disposal. This waste will require landfill capacity for disposal (the lowest level of the waste management hierarchy), at least while alternative approaches are developed and approved. Is there a landfill plan for Sydney? The available capacity is limited, and these changes will make the situation worse and can hardly be considered an outcome that protects the environment or the community. It also goes against what the NSW government is trying to achieve through its Circular Economy policy. A possible approach for managing some of the waste is a transition to food and garden organics (FOGO) collection, however, this is not necessarily appropriate for all local government areas. FOGO would be composted and applied to land, but it should be noted

that the brominated flame retardants will remain an issue, which the EPA could logically seek to regulate. It is suggested that the exemption allowing MWOO to be applied to land be reinstated immediately. The NSW EPA research should be peer reviewed by a specialist committee, including representation from the five processing plants and mutually agreed independent experts. The waste industry has significant experience in dealing with household waste and its practical involvement to collaboratively seek solutions would result in a more holistic approach to waste management, one that is focused on outcomes rather than dictated solutions. John Bernard Cook was managing director of the NSW Waste Management Authority and then Waste Service NSW from 1989 to 1999. Since then, he has been director of John B Cook & Associates, Environment & Business Consultants, specialising in waste management advice to state and local governments and waste companies. Dr Ron Wainberg is technical director at the waste management specialist group MRA Consulting. He is a consultant with over 25 years’ experience in resource recovery from waste materials, the development of practical waste management strategies, and how processing technology can be successfully applied to recover resources from wastes. iw

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// Legal

The new minimum EPA standards explained for construction waste in NSW IN MAY 2019, the EPA will be enforcing new minimum standards for construction and demolition (C&D) waste. These include the following five new standards: • Implement the inspection requirements during the operations at the C&D waste facility in accordance with Standard 1. This includes a primary weighbridge visual inspection and a subsequent “tip and spread” inspection. Personnel must have successfully completed a nationally accredited course in asbestos awareness and bonded asbestos removal. • Implement the sorting requirements during operations at the C&D waste facility in accordance with Standard 2. This requires sorting into individual waste categories for the purpose of further recovery or processing, transport to a waste facility or disposal. • Ensure that construction waste that has been inspected and sorted in accordance with these standards is not mixed with other waste at the C&D waste facility in accordance with Standard 3. • Implement the waste storage requirements for operations at the C&D waste facility in accordance

with Standard 4. That is, each individual waste type must be stored in a separate, clearly labelled storage area. • Ensure that construction waste is not transported from the C&D waste facility unless it complies with Standard 5. That is, C&D waste will not be able to be transported from a C&D waste facility unless it has been inspected, sorted and stored in accordance with the Draft Standards. The new Standards will have legal force through amended regulation and apply to all licensed waste facilities (not landfills). Breaching these new Standards will equate to a breach of a condition in the facilities Environment Protection Licence and section 64 of the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 and financial penalties will apply, so it is important that operators review their practices to determine whether they will be compliant by May 2019. Kim Glassborow is a partner at G&B Lawyers specialising in planning and environment law with a particular interest in waste management issues. Contact: kglassborow@gandblawyers. com.au iw

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FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

Waste Transportation //

Why wood pallets shouldn’t be used for transporting ULABs

A truck with no side gates delivering batteries, which has not been wrapped and strapped, to a scrap metal dealer. It wouldn’t be a very good outcome if this vehicle was involved in an accident.

By David Bush THE WOOD pallet is currently the default device used for transporting used lead acid batteries (ULABs) in Australia. It has become the defacto standard for several reasons, including its low-cost and widespread availability, which also combine to eliminate the need to return the pallets to the consignor. Wood pallets are also the stated preference of Australian battery recycling facilities. However, the wood pallet has several significant drawbacks when used for transporting ULABs. The economic advantage of one-way transport, compared to using returnable plastic containers, disappears upon closer

inspection. So, what are the concerns with using wood pallets?

Health and environmental threat of toxic lead Wood pallets are inadequate for capturing acid leaks during ULAB transportation and storage due to the battery acid containing high levels of lead and other toxic heavy metals, it creates a threat to human health and the environment. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has identified lead as one of 10 chemicals of major public health concern and currently suggests there are no known levels of lead exposure that are considered safe. In fact, the Basel Convention’s Technical guidelines for the environmentally

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The only time the industry appears to make a modest attempt to transport ULABs in a compliant manner is when they are shipping the batteries interstate to recyclers. sound management of waste lead-acid batteries states that the sulfuric acid electrolyte contains high lead levels, as soluble ions and particulate forms. It also states that ULABs must be transported inside sealed containers due to the risk of leakage. Many West Australians may recall the lead poisoning incident that occurred in 2006, when lead dust escaped into the environment during transport of ore from a Wiluna mine to Esperance port. The result was one

of the state’s worst environmental disasters, with thousands of birds dying, 33 people testing for unsafe blood lead levels, and the resulting five-year clean-up costing the state government in-excess of $25 million. While the health risks from transporting lead acid batteries (LABs) are probably not comparable, as lead dissolved in acid could be a problem due to skin absorption of the lead from touching contaminated pallets and batteries. This risk was

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// Waste Transportation

With the increased availability of plastic boxes with suitable strength and capability of retaining acid leaks, Battery Rescue believes it is time the industry moved away from the use of wood pallets for storage and transportation of ULABs. The use of plastic boxes would immediately improve the level of compliance by the industry and reduce the risks to the public and the environment. highlighted in 2016, when one of Australia’s largest pallet hire companies discontinued supply of wood pallets to a battery recycler in Wagga Wagga, NSW, following their operational employees’ blood testing for elevated lead levels. This case reinforces that people working in lead industries have a potential chronic exposure problem and need to be monitored for lead blood levels, and that the use of wood pallets can only serve to increase this risk.

Safety threat to the Australian public and industry workers The second major concern with the use of wood pallets is the safety and environmental risks posed to the Australian public due to the systemic non-compliant packaging and transportation of batteries. To understand why wood pallets are contributing to non-compliance, it is important to examine the packaging and transport requirements in the Australian Code for Transportation of Dangerous Goods (ADGC). For LABs, the packaging requirement are outlined in the ADGC P801 Packing Instruction. For wood pallets, LAB layers need to be separated by a nonconductive layer of sufficient thickness (30mm). The batteries should then be wrapped in plastic, then secured horizontally and vertically by plastic strapping, followed by the appropriate dangerous goods labels being applied. That is a lot of work and it is neither an easy, nor safe, task trying to stack batteries of all different sizes on top of each other. This, combined with variations in worker’s attitudes and training, non-availability of the required materials and tools (e.g. heavy-duty wood pallets, plastic wrap and straps, strapping tool and 30mm non-conductive separators), and the economic cost of performing this task, can lead to shortcuts being taken. The only time the industry appears to make a modest attempt to transport ULABs in a compliant manner is when they are shipping the batteries interstate to battery recyclers. However, I use the word “modest” deliberately, as the majority are shipped with inadequate or no separators. Unfortunately, most batteries have

already been transported several times before the final leg of their journey and the level of regulation compliance for intra-state transport is virtually non-existent. I would estimate that in-excess of 95 per cent of batteries are being transported non-compliantly and this can be verified by observing deliveries being made to the battery aggregators in each state. Incorrect application of metal strapping is reportedly the most common cause of fires when transporting ULABs. Consignors should use high-strength plastic strapping; however, metal straps are often used because of the unavailability of plastic strapping. In November 2017, a 4WD vehicle that was carrying a load of unrestrained used car batteries in Albany, WA, crashed and killed the two occupants. In the accident, car batteries were strewn around the crash site. Whether the batteries contributed to the severity of the accident is unknown, but it is assumed that they could have. The systemic non-compliance of the packaging and transport requirements is increasing the risks to industry workers, the Australian public and the environment in the event of an accident. I believe it is not a question of if, but rather when, a load of poorly packaged and inadequately restrained batteries will contribute to a road fatality.

The regulator’s role Contributing to the widespread and systemic non-compliance by the battery recycling industry is a lack of policing by the governmental departments responsible for their enforcement. On one hand, I have some empathy for the responsible departments, who are often under resourced and need to prioritise the use of their resources to inspect and prosecute breaches for dangerous goods, which pose a higher threat to the public and the environment than batteries do. That said, with approximately 135,000 tonnes per year of ULABs being transported on wood pallets from all over Australia to NSW for recycling, I believe the risks are not insignificant. Hence, if little policing

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is going to be undertaken and there is widespread non-compliance, then why bother with any regulations? I would challenge that with smart deployment of officers, effective and leveraged results can be achieved. Every state has several large aggregators of ULABs, and these companies receive batteries daily from deliveries made to their yard and from their own collection efforts. An officer parked at the front would quickly observe the high level of noncompliance that is occurring. Furthermore, if there are no prosecutions being made, then the current behaviours and contempt displayed by the industry will continue. For the three states I checked – NSW, Victoria and WA – I was able to find only one instance in the last six years of a company being prosecuted for non-compliant transportation of ULABs. If more have occurred, then they need to be easier to find and more visible.

What needs to happen? With the increased availability of plastic boxes with suitable strength and capability of retaining acid leaks, Battery Rescue believe it is time the industry moved away from the use of wood pallets for storage and transportation of ULABs. The use of plastic boxes would immediately improve the level of compliance by the industry and reduce the risks to the public and the environment. Plastic boxes and bins are the main method used in Europe to transport ULABs for recycling. Yes, they have an advantage in that the transport distances are much smaller than in Australia, but maybe, it is because they are more environmentally conscientious than we are. After all, their dry-cell battery recycling rates are approximately 50 times what they are in Australia. Kevin Jones, director of Fleetrak Consulting, demonstrated that despite the additional costs of washing and returning the containers within Australia, on average there is a saving of $21 per tonne of batteries transported using plastic containers versus wood pallets. The savings are due to the time and materials involved in preparing the batteries for transport on wood pallets and the efficiency gains of automatic unloading from plastic boxes. In other words, there is no cost to change to a closed container pool system, for the majority of ULABs collected within Australia, with the exception of the most remote locations. Experts are constantly telling us we are living in a rapidly changing world, which may be true in some

respects. But paradoxically, humans can be slow and resistant to change existing ways of doings things. Consider the story of Malcom McLean, the American businessman who developed and patented the modern intermodal shipping container, which has revolutionised transport and international trade. Despite the obvious efficiency gains of containerised transport, he encountered fierce resistance from the transport industry, and it took many years before the concept became established. Recognising this human tendency, it will take action on several levels to overcome this inertia. Here’s what I believe needs to happen to bring about the changes required: • Revise current ADGC Packing Instructions for LABs, so that requirements are clearer and less ambiguous. • Used battery generators need to support battery collection services that use a plastic box or container. If your current collector is transporting your batteries on wood pallets, then this is probably not complying with current regulations, is unsafe and is damaging the environment. The amount you can get paid for your batteries in return for this tradeoff should not be your primary consideration. • Government regulators need to regulate – starting with a campaign targeting the large battery aggregators and resulting in several high-profile prosecutions. • Like the Europeans, Australian battery recyclers need to install the necessary equipment to enable automatic unloading of batteries from plastic containers. • The use of wood pallets should be eliminated as an option for transporting ULABs. Unless the industry can demonstrate a high level of compliance, it should be given a couple of years to transition away from wood pallets to a plastic container solution. It is only with this sort of combined action that enough momentum will be achieved to overcome the inertia that exists in the industry, while bringing about a safer and more environmentally sustainable Australian ULAB recycling industry. David Bush is the general manager and a director of Battery Rescue, established in 2013, by its sister company UNISEG Products, to provide a safer, more environmentally sustainable, battery collection service using the provisionally patented Battery Transport & Storage (BTS) Container. iw

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

FOGO //

Providing a sustainable closed-loop solutions for FOGO waste streams

A front-end loader emptying compost onto a pile at the Lake Macquarie Organics Resource Recovery Facility.

By Hudson Bawden IN 2012, Lake Macquarie City Council (LMCC) selected REMONDIS to finance, design, build and operate a composting facility that could sustainably process the food and garden organics (FOGO) from residents and local businesses. The Lake Macquarie Organics Resource Recovery Facility (ORRF) was delivered on time and under budget and SMEC is proud to have partnered on this endeavour as superintendent and owner’s engineer for the facility. Firstly, SMEC would like to congratulate LMCC and REMONDIS for their recent wins at Inside Waste’s inaugural 2018 Waste and Resource Recovery Excellence Awards, which recognised organisations that have contributed to innovation and success in the waste and resource recovery sector. Gunther Neumann, senior construction engineer at REMONDIS, said the facility has a 30-year planning horizon and a budget in 32

excess of $10 million. “The facility is Australia’s most modern FOGO composting plant and it provides a sustainable closed-loop processing solution for the region’s organic waste streams. The facility provides high-quality compost and soil conditioner products for residents, schools, vineyards, farms, sport fields and the equestrian industry,” Neumann said. According to Eric Wingate, SMEC’s manager environment and waste for the Newcastle and Hunter region, the facility was an example of collaboration between a forward-looking local council and one of Australia’s leading environmental management organisations, to provide an excellent outcome for communities and the environment. “SMEC has strong expertise in waste management and environmentally challenging projects, and is experienced in liaising with multiple stakeholders including local councils, state governments and communities.

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This experience was valuable during the implementation of the project,” Wingate said. “This has been an outstanding year for REMONDIS and for the Lake Macquarie ORRF, and both should be proud of their achievements. It is very exciting and encouraging to see REMONDIS and LMCC confronting the environmental challenges surrounding waste. “We all want the best outcome for our environment. Together, REMONDIS and LMCC are setting the standard in the region for the best possible environmental outcomes for the next generation and we at SMEC are proud to be involved.” LMCC’s Food + Garden = Green community engagement and awareness campaign ran from early 2018 through to the end of the year, and supported Lake Macquarie residents in the transition to a weekly FOGO and fortnightly garbage collection service. According to Chris Harle, Council’s sustainability engagement coordinator, the campaign guided the delivery

of distinct actions across distinct implementation periods, including early awareness, pre-service, service start and post-service. “It was important for the successful operation of the ORRF that the correct material was being placed in the right bin,” Harle said. “Council has been encouraged by the results from the Sort-It-Right program, which provides immediate feedback to residents on how they are using the service. We’re also adapting our communications and educations materials when we receive any feedback from the community about any concerns they’re having, to ensure we’re capturing lessons learned. “Residents had been responsive to the program and there were high rates of green bins being used correctly. Council performed bin inspections during the first two weeks of the FOGO service, which showed that, on average, 97 per cent of green bins were being used correctly, with no visible contamination. “Not only are these results very

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// FOGO

encouraging, we also believe many of the programs and initiatives under the Food + Garden = Green campaign could be easily replicated by other councils that want to do similar service transitions. “Within the first 1.5 years of our green bin organic waste (garden waste only) composting service, LMCC was already diverting 26,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) of garden waste from landfill due to the positive uptake of the new service by residents.” REMONDIS and LMCC redesigned the facility to accommodate an increase in the expected through-put of 44,000tpa and since July 2018 the site has been receiving food waste, under contract with council for the next 25 years. “The ORRF enables the City to take a leading role in recycling and waste management. It is a significant step in our Waste Strategy and in our efforts to encourage people to think and act more responsibly about household waste disposal,” Harle said. Wingate added that the facility was an example of an interaction between council, community behaviour and the waste stream, which has resulted in good environmental and

One of the first loads of FOGO that was diverted from landfill thanks to the implementation of LMCC’s three-bin service.

waste outcomes. “The policies council has put in place have set out the frameworks that have helped REMONDIS with the efficient management of the ORRF,” Wingate said. “SMEC has observed the development, construction and use of the facility and has been impressed by the efficiency displayed by council and REMONDIS and the positive outcome for the community through the conversion of this material.”

SMEC also has a long-standing working relationship with Cessnock City Council, designing the Cessnock Waste Management Centre for the council. “SMEC’s engineering and environmental capabilities are worldclass. As a company, SMEC is able to deliver on a full range of projects, from the Snowy Mountains 2.0 hydropower project, through to the projects that affect local communities, such as waste and recycling,” Wingate said. “We all want the best outcome for

our environment, and often there are competing outcomes of engineering, environment, and waste. Every project has its own complexities and individual needs. “SMEC has proudly delivered projects ranging from the design of a new landfill cell, which was designed to withstand settlement from mine subsidence, to remediation of former landfills surrounded by Ramsar wetlands and endangered species, through to the design of waste transfer stations. “We try to put ourselves in the shoes of our clients and the people they work for – the community. We are dedicated to achieving first-class outcomes, while also optimising value and efficiencies for our clients.” Hudson Bawden, associate, SMEC communications and stakeholder engagement provides input and technical advice to SMEC’s multidisciplinary projects, including building and maintaining effective internal and external relationships, and contributing to effective client relationship management through effective communication, community consultation and stakeholder engagement. iw

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FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

Industry Partnership //

Turning the tide on waste By Jan Arreza AUSTRALIA’S government-accredited mobile phone recycling program MobileMuster has teamed up with notfor-profit organisation Take 3 for the Sea to support its mission to reduce plastic pollution in our oceans. The partnership aims to tackle two of the biggest waste issues facing Australia today – electronic waste and plastic pollution – by highlighting the scale of Australia’s waste problem and educating people on how they can make a difference to prevent and reduce their personal waste at home. “Two of the biggest issues that we are facing today are e-waste – specifically around mobile phones – and plastic pollution. They are two big issues that are concurrent, and this partnership aims to raise the awareness of both those issues,” said Spyro Kalos, MobileMuster manager. “We are encouraging people to think about simple actions that they can take in their own environment to change their habits for the better, to change the way they consume products and think about how they manage them at its end-of-life. “The value comes from recycling and recovering those resources and then putting them back into the production of new products, ultimately reducing the need to mine virgin materials. “On the plastic side of things, it’s also about making those significant changes in our behaviour, such as using reusable bags instead of single-use plastics, no longer using plastic straws, transitioning

An In-store mobile phone recycling drop-off point.

Spyro and Tim aim to tackle two of the country’s biggest waste issues – e-waste and plastic pollution.

“Two of the biggest issues that we are facing today are e-waste – specifically around mobile phones – and plastic pollution. They are two big issues that are concurrent, and this partnership aims to raise the awareness of both those issues.” to using reusable cups for your coffees.” With e-waste growing at three times the rate of general waste in Australia, 23 million old mobile phones stockpiled in drawers across the country and an estimated eight million metric tonnes of plastic entering our oceans every year, there is a need to address this problem alongside plastic waste. “Take 3 is a not-for-profit organisation with a mission that is quite clear – we try to stop the problem of global plastic pollution. But we are also big proponents of addressing other waste management issues and adopting circular economy principles,” said Tim Silverwood, cofounder and CEO of Take 3 for the Sea. “We’re really pleased to be approached by MobileMuster to partner on their campaign. We recognise that both plastic pollution and e-waste are growing problems, and particularly ones that are getting a lot of air time in the public domain, and the hope is by going out there and joining forces we can bring further awareness to both problems and motivate people to take action.” New research reveals that Australians have good intentions when it comes to recycling, with 45 per cent stating

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they intend to recycle their old mobile phones. But this motivation soon drops off, with only 15 per cent of people actually recycling their old devices. This motivation gap is something that MobileMuster aims to help address by giving people an extra reason to recycle. “One of the things that we have committed to as a program is to always work towards raising the awareness of mobile phone recycling and to encourage people to think about the circular economy,” Kalos said. “We ran a campaign in October last year, which was one of our most successful campaigns, in terms of educating consumers on how to backup, transfer and delete data, so that they can safely and comfortably reuse or recycle their devices. “We will continue to play in the education and awareness space, and we will continue to look at how we can involve and bring greater value not only to our members, but also to the general public, in terms of available resources and tools to help them responsibly manage their devices when they no longer need them.” MobileMuster has set a target to

collect at least 30,000 old mobile phones over January and February 2019. Every mobile phone that is recycled with MobileMuster will help Take 3 for the Sea remove plastic from our oceans and waterways. This means that Australians can de-clutter their homes, help save precious resources by recycling their old phones, while also cleaning up the environment. Organisations like Take 3 for the Sea are fundamental in helping prevent plastic pollution and associated threats to marine life. A failure to address plastic pollution will result in there being more plastic in the ocean than fish by 2050. “Take 3 for the Sea conducts projects to remove up to 10 million pieces of plastic from the environment each year and this campaign helps to raise further awareness on the important role we can all play to minimise our environmental impact,” Silverwood said. “We believe that single-use plastics like straws, bags and bottles are quite unnecessary, so we really are trying to create a movement of people who are responding to the problem by removing rubbish and reducing their footprint. “We would like to see more Federal leadership and corporate leadership in this space. Also, the public’s awareness around the problem is growing quite considerably and we need to turn that movement into greater policy changes and corporate accountability.” iw

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

// Young Professionals

Fostering networks for the industry’s young professionals “It’s all about who you know. Young professionals should be looking for any industry events that they can participate in and get themselves some exposure and really start talking to people in the industry and asking for advice,” Daneel said. “More importantly, they need to really learn to listen and really take in the advice they get as well, which I think is something that some people don’t really do. Listening is just as valuable as telling people about yourself and your achievements. Genevieve Daneel has already gained a wealth of experience “And that’s why I and knowledge in such a short period of time in the industry. believe they should By Jan Arreza come and join us at WMRR’s Young Professionals because that is exactly FROM WORKING in the field what we do – we try and get more supervising commercial bush of that network of collaboration regeneration projects, to authoring established in this industry for our reports tackling strategic responses young professionals. to rapid urban densification and the “We definitely want to be more China National Sword, Genevieve actively engaging with our network Daneel, environmental consultant at and we are trying to pull some people Jacobs, has already gained a diverse in from not just the waste consultant wealth of experience and knowledge and service provider space, but also to in her professional career, despite try and get brand owners in to really only having a bit over four years of start building that circular economy experience in the resource recovery, for Australia. That is definitely what renewable energy and planning I am going to be pushing for this year sectors. and really trying to help the industry Daneel has a particular passion for in reaching that goal.” workshop facilitation and believes that In 2018, Daneel was selected to active collaboration between industry, be the resource recovery expert judge regulators and the community is the on the panel for Sydney’s Climathon key to delivering sector-wide benefits 2018, which is a global 23-hour and help Australia transition towards a climate change hackathon that takes circular economy. place simultaneously in more than Daneel sits on two Waste Management 100 cities around the world and was and Resource Recovery Association of facilitated in Sydney by Climate-KIC Australia (WMRR) working groups – Australia. she fosters a community where other Last year’s pitch was to develop a young professionals can develop their business model that prevents, reduces networks as deputy chair of the NSW or reuses waste in the areas of food, Young Professionals, as well as playing fashion, containers or packaging. an active role in the NSW Resource According to Daneel, the experience and Energy Recovery working group. was very rewarding as she was able Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

to get a new perspective on resource recovery management from engaged and innovative teams who generally did not have a background in waste management. Daneel also worked with industry and the government on collaboration initiatives to progress Australia’s successful transition to a circular economy and worked with organisations critical to driving this transition, such as the Australia Packaging Covenant Organisation, the NSW EPA, as well as several progressive councils. “I feel that I have really contributed in key efforts to achieving certain goals, putting a lot

of time and effort into developing the energy from waste factsheets, as well as being selected as the deputy chair for the Young Professionals. That was a really big moment for me, and it has really helped to launch my network quite early on in my career,” Daneel said. “Moving forward, I really want to try to engage more stakeholders from industry and from local government. Usually we do a fair bit of work with councils on developing their waste strategies, which is really interesting because you are really looking from that higher level with the councils and setting up their priorities for years to come.” iw

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FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

Product Stewardship //

Product Stewardship in 2019: A selected snapshot The review of the Product Stewardship Act is yet to be completed and there is no sense of commitment to the consultation process.

By John Gertsakis AS THE nation’s focus on waste reduction continues, it becomes apparent that some sectors and industries are tackling the issue with urgency, innovation and commitment. Communities and councils are also pushing forward with their desire to cut waste and think more responsibly about consumption. States and territories are in the mix with container deposit schemes (CDS), plastic bag bans, levies, e-waste landfill bans and investigations on what the circular economy means for their communities and businesses. Of course, progress varies dramatically between these sectors. What is of most concern is the obvious lack of national leadership. Acknowledging that the states and

territories have most of the authority and power to enact waste and recycling improvements, they and the Australian government can do more to deliver harmonised policies, consistent approaches and timely outcomes. At a time when policy reform, targeted investment, dynamic regulation and impactful incentives are most needed to improve waste avoidance and resource recovery, it would appear that some governments are asleep at the wheel. This is illustrated by the recently refreshed National Waste Policy (NWP), which was only partially approved by environment ministers due to its lack of realistic targets and a funded implementation plan. To call it a fiasco is an understatement. If the Commonwealth was serious about the NWP, it could exercise the

INSIDEWASTE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

authority and power that it holds, namely through the Product Stewardship Act 2011. Much more can be done by the Commonwealth to invest in, support and enable product stewardship schemes. So, what might this mean for product stewardship and producer responsibility initiatives as one of the 14 strategies identified in the NWP during 2019? A selected snapshot of positive developments and hiccups are shared below:

Product Stewardship Act Review The review of the Product Stewardship Act is yet to be completed and there is no sense of commitment to the consultation process, which commenced under Josh Frydenberg in 2017. The process has been drawn-out and conducted with

little indication of a robust methodology for execution, let alone completion and wider dissemination. The Commonwealth Department of Environment and Energy website currently says, “This consultation closed on June 29, 2018. The Department is currently compiling submissions and will publish them soon. A report will be published later in 2018”. However, no report has been published to date. It begs the question as to why the environment minister is stalling when so much could be enabled by the review’s outcomes. Is it a case of respective ministers, or is the Department of the Environment and Energy being indifferent to product stewardship relative to other areas of the portfolio? Let’s hope that the review is concluded before a Federal election and

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// Product Stewardship

the outcomes are positive and reflective of issues and suggestions put forward in stakeholder submissions.

Environmental Impacts of Products Also approaching the two-year gestation period of an elephant’s pregnancy, is the finalisation of a national approach to product stewardship action, which is titled the Assessment|Action|Escalation Process Consultation was undertaken, submissions were received and now the silence continues. Not unlike the Product Stewardship Act review, this process is also delayed with no sense of action by the Department or the minister. This particular initiative has the potential to include additional product categories for genuine action, but more importantly, to accelerate the pace of action for categories such as batteries – big and small, microbeads, tyres, mattresses and a broader scope of electrical and electronic products. Given community expectations for leadership and policy reform on numerous product types and waste streams, it seems to be another lost opportunity for the Australian government to respond to growing public interest in waste.

NTCRS Annual reports and outcomes In reporting on the performance of the scheme, the Department in the first three years of the scheme’s operation produced an Annual Outcomes report. Unfortunately, the last one was published for scheme performance in 2014-15. In regard to the statutory five-year review of the National Television and Computer Recycling Scheme (NTCRS) Regulation due in 2017, this is tied to the review of the Product Stewardship Act and there has been little progress since the initial consultation rounds in late 2017. Some minor changes to the conversion and scaling factors were rushed through prior to July 2018. The only stakeholders benefiting from these changes appear to be the manufacturers and importers, as this year’s scheme target is less than last year, even though the percentage of waste arising has increased to 64 per cent. Growing chatter is that some arrangements are not renewing their collection contracts with some local councils, especially in regional and smaller states. There were many other proposed improvements to the scheme that appear to have been shelved even though they were strongly supported by many stakeholders. These included broadening the scope of the scheme, accounting for reuse in the targets, improving the certification of recyclers under AS/NZS:5377, and introducing

state targets to ensure genuine provision of reasonable access in regional and remote areas which continue to be underserviced. Given that Victoria is introducing an e-waste landfill ban from July 1, 2019, there is an urgent need to broaden the scope of the NTCRS, otherwise the community and councils may not be effectively supported to recover other electronic and electrical products.

Handheld Batteries This category is not where it should be today. In short, it’s very disappointing. Australia should have had a national battery stewardship scheme up and running by now, especially given the growing impact of batteries on fire safety, contamination of kerbside recycling and very low recycling rates. The Australian Battery Recycling Initiative (ABRI) seems to have run out of charge on the issue, and the Battery Stewardship Council, while holding some potential, seems to be a paper tiger that has antagonised key battery brands. As the lead jurisdiction covering stewardship for handheld batteries, it’s time that the Queensland government recognises a voluntary industry-led scheme isn’t going to work and that Australia now requires a co-regulated approach for handheld batteries posthaste. This will level the playing field, maximise producer/importer participation, increase recycling rates and eliminate dubious proposals to run piecemeal battery recycling services in capital cities at the cost of providing free battery recycling services in regional communities.

While there seem to be some social enterprise benefits with some of the services provided, it appears that the current program is more akin to a feefor-service waste management offering than a manufacturer/retailer-funded stewardship scheme. The current mattress stewardship approach highlights the need to have intervention where voluntary approaches are embedding the status quo, inadequate or slow. With mattresses, it seems industry has definitely been asleep on the job, and the honeymoon should be over.

Observations moving forward Product stewardship is no silver bullet; however, it has its place. Where used intelligently, it can correct market failures, enable voluntary efforts and do some heavy lifting in resource recovery ipso facto the NTCRS, MobileMuster, Paintback, Drum Muster and numerous individual company stewardship programs. Many manufacturers, brands and importers are eager to engage but require improved policy or regulatory certainty to move forward. And this requires national leadership and

foresight in a way that acknowledges the economic, social and environmental value of effective stewardship approaches. Similarly, the waste and resource recovery industries are poised to expand their services and invest further subject to governments at all levels ensuring the right policy settings. It’s too early to really assess where programs and schemes will land during 2019, however, the one that needs urgent action in my opinion is handheld batteries. The community is ready and waiting and some individual services such as those operated via ALDI and IKEA stores provide a useful foundation. The National Waste and Recycling Industry Council (NWRIC) and the Australian Council of Recycling (ACR) has echoed the need for regulated battery collection and recycling and goes further to advocate a mandatory tyre scheme given the frequent stockpile “pop-ups”. There can be no doubt that policymakers will need to modify their view of regulation (including tax incentives) for some product categories if we are to meet community expectations and truly activate new patterns of consumption that are sustainable, productive and part of a circular economy. iw

MAXIMIZE YOUR REVERSING SAFETY

Photovoltaic systems The Victorian government through Sustainability Victoria (SV) is driving action on photovoltaic systems with extensive stakeholder engagement underway and preliminary scheme options under assessment (and I note that Equilibrium is engaged to support SV with this project). This project recognises that the projected volumes of end-of-life solar panels and associated equipment is going to increase significantly over the medium-term, and thus the need for stewardship action to address potential impacts, while also maximising resource recovery levels. Ongoing stakeholder engagement and consultation is underway and still open for interested parties to contribute and be informed.

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Mattresses Despite years of scheme development and talk, nationwide access to mattress stewardship solutions at no cost to the public and consumers remains underdeveloped and poorly designed.

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Call 1300 4 92226

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

Education //

Education: Playing the long game

Education around waste is more critical now than ever before.

By Syed Shah WHETHER IT’S helping councils with recommendations for methods to process food waste, minimising contamination or having a unified approach to better waste management practices, education is a must. Only with targeted education and a strategic focus to achieve behavioural change can best practices be perpetuated within the waste community. Education within the waste sector is critical when it has behavioural focus and outcomes – specifically on community behaviours within a service. However, that form of education needs to lead to clear outcomes centred around service participation, contamination within recycling containers, or contamination within green waste and food and gardens organics services (FOGO). To move the industry forward, EnviroCom regional manager Glenn Eales believes that the waste industry needs to have a much stronger focus 38

on strategic educational approaches for the best behavioural outcomes to be achieved. “In the past, the local waste industry was too focused on information sharing and delivering a message, and there was not enough focus on identifying behaviours and preferred behavioural outcomes, nor the strive to achieve them,” Eales said. “As an industry, we have not focused enough on the strategy of how we put together mechanisms and tools to address, modify and achieve the desired behavioural outcomes through education. “Having a strategic approach to education, being strong and brave enough to critically evaluate what has been done previously and learning from these experiences is essential in developing effective behaviour change programs. This is because communities develop over time and their understanding and ways of engaging with these sorts of topics will change over time.

INSIDEWASTE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

Having a strategic approach to education, being strong and brave enough to critically evaluate what has been done previously and learning from these experiences is essential in developing effective behaviour programs. “Educational approaches need to be flexible and they need to be prepared to meet the needs and expectations of each individual community. This can only be achieved by having a clear understanding of behavioural outcomes – what are the barriers to change, and what will motivate the community to adopt and maintain a preferred behaviour so that it becomes normalised within the community over time.”

The leadership factor With regards to changes and actions needed on a local and state government level, Eales suggests that it actually depends on which state you are in, and the approach to leadership of waste education within that state.

Eales questions whether the state governments are in the best position to assess individual communities and recognise how they are changing around different services, or different behaviours, in order to be able to push the boundaries of strategic decisionmaking and promotion. “It would be better to look at what the state’s ideal role would be as this would be a more effective approach to facilitating opportunities for the local communities,” Eales said. “The states aren’t necessarily in a position to be providers of the most innovative program for any individual community, because these programs need to be targeted at local communities – where they’ve been, where they’re going, and what they’re

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

// Education

doing at the time. In this case, the state needs to be providing the frameworks and the resources for the support to be effectively undertaken at a local level. “The ideal role of the state is to not be the overarching body that coordinates, but to instead be the overarching body that facilitates the appropriate understanding of strategic development and encourages the adoption of critical evaluation of educational approaches.”

Looking ahead EnviroCom has been leading research, education and training on behalf of many sectors of the waste industry for the last 20 years. While there is no doubt the industry has evolved over that time, the overarching approach to education has remained relatively unchanged, as reflected in ongoing issues associated with community engagement of waste service provisions. Eales suggests that in light of recent events within the industry – whether it be China’s National Sword Policy, the introduction of the Container Refund Scheme, the emerging introduction and implementation of FOGO systems,

or the impact that ABCs War on Waste program had on sparking waste related conversations across the country – education is more critical now than ever before. “Waste dialogue is happening within the community and now is the time to act. It is not a matter of discounting the educational approaches of the past but being able to critically assess and evaluate these approaches,” Eales said. “Learning from past experiences allows us to adopt a more strategic, targeted and innovative approach to education, which truly relates to, and engages with, the needs and expectations of our local communities. “The success and effectiveness of the industry is reliant on people recognising the impacts of their behaviours, while also learning to regard waste as a valuable resource, rather than a worthless commodity. “This can only be achieved through education. Education, done well, is a powerful tool for community change, but we need to be innovative, strategic and flexible in our approaches in order to instil positive behaviours that can be adopted immediately and sustained over time.” iw

The success and effectiveness of the industry is reliant on people realising impacts of their behaviours.

EnviroCom Australia®

Celebrating 20 Years of partnerships in

Sustainability Education, Training, Research and Planning with

local, regional and state government waste contractors private business

www.envirocom.com.au

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FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

Energy from Waste //

Energy from Waste in regional Australia By John King and Alex Upitis THE progression towards energy from waste (EfW) has been driven by a community push for diversion of waste from landfill and to make better use of resources, greater regional collaboration, political support, undeveloped resource recovery markets and, in some instances, policy drivers. While the initial growth of EfW in Australia has been focused on waste generated in (or near) the metropolitan cities, there is substantial interest for EfW facilities coming from rural and regional areas. The absence of significant economies of scale in these locations raises a number of questions. Can EfW be a feasible alternative to landfill in regional and rural Australia? What will make an EfW facility feasible in a rural area? How important are regional collaboration and the availability of suitable technologies? What are the risks and benefits associated with EfW contract models?

Feasbility The feasibility of a rural/regional EfW facility will rely on community acceptance, proven technology of an appropriate capacity and reliable quantities of waste. It is critical that early, continued, open and honest discussion is facilitated with the community. Without this, the EfW project is likely to fail or at least have considerable delays and/or community backlash. In today’s market, there is limited availability of proven technology operating commercially at a scale of 30,000 – 100,000 tonnes per annum for treating mixed waste. While technologies do operate at this scale in other countries, such as gasification facilities in Norway, it is not yet clear if these will be viable in the Australian context. Their viability will be influenced by the geographic, regulatory, energy supply, cost climate and the waste industry structure of the market into which the facility will be located. Local governments manage reliable quantities of waste, making them important players in the waste supplychain. Furthermore, these waste quantities are extremely attractive to resource recovery companies that 40

While the initial growth of EfW in Australia has been focused on waste generated in (or near) the metropolitan cities, there is substantial interest for EfW facilities coming from rural and regional areas. require consistent baseload supply to ensure commercial viability and bankability. Unlike metropolitan cities that can generate large amounts of waste from both residential and commercial and industrial (C&I) customers, rural groups of councils are likely to need to consolidate their waste to provide a bankable EfW solution. Recent EfW projects in Australia have assisted in increasing the industry’s understanding of the restrictions of local government governance and regulatory requirements, and the mechanisms available to assemble the required quantities of feedstock waste. In addition, local governments are becoming more aware of the requirements for project financing and acceptable risk distribution between the waste supplier and contractors. Continuation of the increased level of interest in the establishment of EfW facilities is likely to see the feasibility of non-metropolitan EfW facilities be tested.

with economies of scale and relatively secure waste supply, which in turn reduces the project’s commercial risks. Collaborative procurement of EfW services by local governments can occur though formal agreements between the local governments to enter into a single contract with the EfW facility operator. This has occurred for the two EfW facilities currently being developed in Perth. Alternatively, the local governments can participate in the single tender process and each enter into separate contracts with the same tenderer. Maintaining strong regional collaboration and commitment to the contract(s) by the local governments are vital in ensuring the long-term viability of the arrangement.

Available technologies

Regional collaboration

EfW has existed since the 19th century with more recent interest since the 1970s in Europe, USA and Asia. Today, EfW facilities process waste with proven technologies and well-established regulatory frameworks.

The trends in local government procurement of waste management services is showing an increasing role for the private sector in resource recovery markets, including in nonmetropolitan areas. This has led to the delivery of merchant plants (privately owned and serving several customers under different waste supply contracts) such as the EfW facilities being developed in WA. In the same context, waste management remains a vital service for local governments, so they will continue to play a vital role in this market due to their ability to be reliable suppliers of waste. This is being done through collaboration with the private sector and between local governments. Regional collaboration can benefit both local governments and the private industry by improving the viability of projects, such as developing an EfW facility. The consolidation of waste quantities provides an EfW facility

Combustion facilities recover energy from heat released from waste being burned in a combustion chamber with an oxygen-rich environment. This heat converts water into steam, which is then sent to a turbine generator to produce electricity. This process generally has a high cost for flue gas cleaning and thus tends to be only economical on a large-scale. Both the East Rockingham and Kwinana facilities in WA have proposed this technology, with a capacity of 300,000 to 400,000 tonnes per annum respectively. Gasification of waste is based on the conversion of organic or fossil carbonbased materials into syngas. The syngas produced is combusted to generate electricity. This process generates a limited amount of contaminated air emissions and, as a result, has a lower cost for gas cleaning. These types of facilities operate at a smaller scale in some countries due to their lower costs. They are likely to be most suited

INSIDEWASTE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

Director and principal waste consultant at Talis, John King.

in terms of scale for regional/rural EfW facilities. Pyrolysis is an emerging technology for the treatment of mixed wastes. Waste undergoes thermal decomposition in the absence of oxygen to produce gas, oils and char. This process can operate at a smallscale and generally tends to target a single waste stream. This technology is proven on homogeneous waste streams – not mixed, such as municipal solid waste (MSW) – such as wood or tyres. There are several plants in Australia of this nature treating single waste streams, however, it remains largely unproven on MSW.

Contract models The evolution of waste management in local government has seen councils lose the appetite for ownership of facilities, such as Material Recovery Facilities (MRF) and landfills due to their long-term liabilities and commercial risks. As with any project of substantial size, maintaining commitment and agreements, and local government structures, provides challenges for all parties involved (councils and contractors). Over the past decade this has seen local governments transition through several ownership models which have progressively transferred more risk to the contractor. The traditional contract model for ownership saw the local government award a ‘Design and Construct’ contract that would give the council direct ownership of the facility once commissioned. This approach remains popular on smaller scale projects, however, ownership and

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

// Energy from Waste

the requirements to successfully operate an EfW facility is not typically within local government’s capacity (metropolitan or rural) and is therefore, not recommended for councils wishing to establish an EfW facility. A number of major mechanical biological treatment facilities have been developed on this basis, including that of the Southern Metropolitan Regional Council in Perth. A Public-Private Partnership allows for a ‘shared’ ownership of the facility, generally between a service provider and a single waste supplier (such as a local government) or a group of waste suppliers (such a regional group of local governments). This contract model sees the contractor build, own and operate the facility on behalf of the waste suppliers. The viability of the facility is therefore structured around the single waste supply agreement, so the waste supply, and other risk rests with the waste supplier(s). Therefore, this contract will result in the local governments being liable for ‘residual’ ownership risks associated with the supply of waste to the EfW facility over an extended period. This model was used for the Mindarie Regional Council facility in Perth’s northern suburbs.

The most recent contract model used by local governments (in particular the EfW facilities proposed for Perth) is the Waste Supply Agreement (WSA), which places the least amount of risk on local governments. This model promotes and allows private industry to have complete ownership of the EfW facility and bear all the risks associated with building, operating and maintaining it. The only risk to local government is associated with supplying waste to the facility. The WSA-type contract allows the facility owner to benefit from the reliable quantities of waste from the local governments, while also having the opportunity to increase waste tonnes from multiple sources including C&I. It is important that these contracts make provision for improvements in resource recovery, which will divert waste supply to a better use than EfW. This can be done by providing an exclusive right to only residual waste that is not recovered for a better use. If a ‘use or pay’ arrangement is used, then the committed quantity of waste should be considerably less than the available waste to allow for major increases of alternative forms of resource recovery.

Conclusion The successful development of EfW facilities in rural and regional areas of Australia will be dependent on: • The feasibility of proven technology for treating the available wastes at the proposed scale and under the geographic, regulatory, energy supply, cost climate and the waste industry structure of the market into which the facility will be located; • Assembling reliable supply of residual waste which is likely to be sourced from a number of sources; • Collaboration with the private sector and between local governments; • Suitable waste supply agreements that underpin the long-term supply of feedstock waste and that accommodate improvements in resource recovery higher up the waste hierarchy so that EfW remains viable in the future; and • Community acceptance and support for EfW as a means of moving to a more sustainable waste management system. Assemble these ingredients, and you have yourself the makings of a feasible EfW project and a viable alternative to landfill in rural and regional Australia. John King is director and principal

Waste lead NSW and Victoria and senior consultant at Talis, Alex Upitis.

waste consultant at Talis Consultants. John has over 40 years professional experience and has been project director on some of the largest resource recovery EfW projects within Australia. Alex Upitis is waste lead NSW and Victoria and senior consultant at Talis Consultants. Alex is an environmental engineer and specialises in the delivery of waste strategy, contracts and infrastructure projects for local government and the commercial sector. iw

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FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

2019 Consultants’ Survey //

Headed to the top By Syed Shah OVER EIGHT years ago, Inside Waste launched its annual Consultants’ Review/Survey and since then, we have been constantly refining the processes and categories based on the many conversations we’ve had with our readers. We are grateful for the constructive feedback received over the years as we believe that the review process can only make the process better. This year, we have excluded the awards portion of the Inside Waste Consultants’ Survey. We wanted to take a closer look at the questions posed and the answers provided over the years – so, for those who have participated, you can be assured, you have been part of the fairest review yet. Since early last year, we have been followed by loyal readers who have been interested in this review from the beginning. We thank you for your undying support and, like in previous years, the review was only sent to non-consultants, meaning consultancies big or small were not allowed to participate. But, unlike previous years, we have moved over to a better review system that has allowed us to fully sift out any consultants that were accidentally included in this review. This ensured 100 per cent parity in the results that you will be reading in the ensuing pages. Several other features of the review remained the same. These included the

The number of responses to the 2019 survey remained strong with quality comments given.

fact that each review was considered unique in that a participant could not submit multiple responses or pass the link on to anyone else. In addition, the new system that we have employed does an automatic double check to ensure that any glitch is automatically considered null and void. In terms of the quantity and quality of responses, we were assuming that we may have gotten far less than

previous years, but the numbers stayed fairly strong. However, while numbers do matter, it was the quality that we were after. In total, we received over a hundred responses from the right stakeholders – all levels of government (with over 40 per cent coming at the local level followed by state and Federal), commercial operators and private waste contractors (over 30 per cent) – who gave the bulk of the comment

for this review. Scoring systems remained constant too. Previously, Inside Waste pitted consulting firms against each other in two major categories – the quantity of projects and their value (based on the return on investment [ROI] to their clients) and further sub-categories. Unlike the last review, companies were not divided into large and small firms and were scored on a total of 17 questions. We did not have a list

Table 1: Top 3 consultancies based on services offered

Waste auditing

Logistics - collection & transfer

Design & engineering of facilities

Landfill - design, operation, gas,

Technology/ infrastructure reviews

Strategy, policy & planning

Firm

Rank

Firm

Rank

Firm

Rank

Firm

Rank

Firm

Rank

Firm

Rank

A.Prince Consulting

1st

Arcadis

1st

GHD

1st

GHD

1st

SLR Consulting

1st

Rawtec

1st

Rawtech

2nd

GHD

2nd

AECOM

2nd

Golder Associates

2nd

GHD

2nd

SLR Consulting

1st

SLR Consulting

3rd

Rawtec

2nd

Golder Associates

2nd

Tonkin Consulting

3rd

Talis Consultants,

3rd

Jacobs Engineering Group

2nd

SLR Consulting

2nd

Tonkin Consulting

3rd

Rawtec

3rd

Talis Consulting

3rd

Talis Consulting

3rd

SLR Consulting

3rd

AECOM

3rd

MRA

3rd

Talis Consulting

3rd

INSIDEWASTE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

// 2019 Consultants’ Survey

Table 2: Top 3 in consultancies in rank (quantity)

Table 3: Top 3 in consultancies in rank (value)

Rank

Firm

Rank

Firm

1st Place

Rawtec

1st Place

Rawtec

2nd Place

MRA

2nd Place

MRA

3rd Place

SLR Consulting

3rd Place

GHD

Here are the firms that were ranked 1st in:

“Consultancies are only as good as the people who are working on the project. Often, the larger firms offer the experience but end up putting inexperienced people on the job. This could compromise the promised end results.” of winners for this year. Instead, we chose to rank all the consultants based on what we thought were key offerings and strengths that each consultancy possessed. In this way, we honour the firms that did well in specific streams. Of course, right at the end, we do have a final ranking where we list the top three, in terms of quantity of projects given and the best value given, according to the participants of the review. For this portion, participants gauged consultancies based on the number of projects that they have undertaken with that particular consultancy and the ROI from each project. Following this, they then provide us with a ranking score, and we tally up the scores and rank the consultants based on best ROI on the greatest number of projects undertaken. For example, if a consultant has undertaken five times

Education, training & community

more projects than the next but have received a very poor ROI score on the projects undertaken, then they would still rank lower compared to the one who has less projects but has given better ROI.

The 2019 Inside Waste Consultants Survey results Now that we are done with the explanation of the metrics, let’s get straight down to announcing the rankings and reviewing some of the comments from the participants. The previous edition focussed more on the top three consultancies in both the big and small categories. However, this year, we are taking a more holistic approach and putting the large and small firms all together. Thus, this year, we are announcing the best ranking results for firms who have scored the best in the categories they specialise in.

Environmental/ greenhouse manage

Economic evaluation & modelling

• W aste auditing: A.Prince Consulting • L ogistics – Collection and transfer: Arcadis • D esign and engineering of facilities: GHD • L andfill – design, operation, gas: GHD • Technology/infrastructure review: SLR Consulting • Strategy, policy and planning: Rawtec and SLR Consulting (2-way tie) • Education, training and community: EnviroCom Australia • Environmental/greenhouse management: Arcadis • E conomic evaluation and modelling: GHD • Environmental approvals: GHD • P rocurement – tender development: Rawtec, SLR Consulting, HD Pty Ltd and Equilibrium (4-way tie) With everyone thrown into the jumble this year, the competition was fierce. Table 1 highlights the firms that placed second and third

Environmental approvals

Procurement tender development

Firm

Rank

Firm

Rank

Firm

Rank

Firm

Rank

Firm

Rank

EnviroCom Australia

1st

Arcadis

1st

GHD Pty Ltd

1st

GHD Pty Ltd

1st

Rawtec

1st

GHD

2nd

GHD Pty Ltd

2nd

SLR Consulting

2nd

Arcadis

2nd

SLR Consulting

1st

Impact Environmental

2nd

Golder Associates

3rd

Arcadis

2nd

Tonkin Consulting Pty Ltd

3rd

HD Pty Ltd & Equilibrium

2nd

A.Prince Consulting

2nd

AECOM

3rd

MRA

3rd

Talis

2nd

Talis

3rd

Rawtec

3rd

A.Prince Consulting

3rd

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

in each of these sections and it was a tight with a number of firms tying for first, second and third place across various categories. What we can see is the constant improvement of consultancies over the years in terms of the strategic offerings, especially the smaller firms. Some have refocused their strategy on niche areas, such as audit and come out stronger than the larger firms. On the other hand, larger firms such as GHD have continued to dominate in several categories like landfill, technology review and environmental approvals.

So what voters have to say? GHD has received praise like in past years for their strength in delivery on their projects. “For several of our projects, we have used GHD and they have continued to deliver consistent analysis and results,” according to a participant, who commented on why he saw GHD as the top firm in the economic evaluation and modelling category. In the landfill, design, gas category, GHD was also given praise for “sound” designs and landfill gas management. Like before, there were several readers who gave comments that GHD’s team was were skilled and in touch with regulations and trends of the industry. A.Prince Consulting was described as being a leader in CDS, aboriginal communities’ waste management and Asia Pacific plastics projects. It was also complimented on being reliable. The consultancy received praise for its “experience, knowledge and value for money”. Another participant saw A.Prince Consulting as a firm that has great knowledge of the industry and committed to helping clients sort out their challenges. Rawtec, who scored first in rankings for procurement in tender development and strategy, policy and planning, had positive remarks about its industry knowledge, too. One reader commented, “Rawtec is always focussed on the job, with attention

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

2019 Consultants’ Survey //

Chart 1: Change in spending

Change in Spending 2016 - 2018 (%) 14

Decrease less than 10% Decrease more than 10% Increase less than 10% Increase more than 10% 2016-2017

to detail and the ability to critically analyse data that surpasses my experience with other consultants.” They were also noted to have a great team of “highly knowledgeable and passionate people”. MRA, which came in second in the overall review rankings, did receive good comments as well. In the strategy policy and planning

category, a reader mentioned that MRA has “good experience in this area and produces consistent reports on findings”. There were other companies that did not feature in the top three rankings in any of the categories but did get good reviews. Logicus Environmental Management was said to be a “pleasure to work with” by one participant.

2017-2018

The participant also mentioned that Logicus has “substantial experience with local government and landfills in rural and regional areas”. Inside Waste has noted that these companies were not at the forefront in the previous editions of the review and these positive reviews are indicators that the dark horses in the industry are starting to make a push forward. The race to the top for the different categories was tight and some saw fresh entries in the top 3 spots.

INSIDEWASTE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

No change

Top 3 overall in rankings Finally, we get on to the top three overall vote getters in terms of quantity and value. And, there are no big surprises here with the usual suspects from previous years taking top spots. Rawtec has come out tops according to our survey participants (see tables 2 and 3) and a group of readers have pointed out it is their good knowledge and their drive to see projects through with their clients that sets them apart from the rest. Now, we are sure that the rest of the firms will argue that they possess the same virtues but, the respondents have voted! And yes, we also take into account what our respondents think about money spent on consultants because comparatively, there has been changes in spending patterns (on consultancy services) last year. In 2018, 12 per cent of respondents expect an increase in spending of more than 10 per cent (see chart 1). This is consistent with 2017 of 164 respondents, who expected an increase in spending by more than 10 per cent in that year. However, 3 per cent of consultants expect a decrease in spending by more than 10 per cent in 2018, compared to only 2 per cent in 2017, while 5 per cent expect a decrease in spending by less than 10 per cent in 2018 compared to a much lower 1 per cent in 2017. iw

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

// 2019 Consultants’ Survey

The consultants and their areas of expertise IF YOU are searching for a waste expert to help your issues, here is a list that will surely help. Every edition of the Consultants’ Surveyputs together a list of the leading waste consultants in Australia. Within this list, you will find where they are located, what they specialise in, their staffing numbers and revenue breakdown by segment.

2019

SERVICES AND DETAILS

●

$2 million to $5 milion

30%

NSW; QLD; VIC

https://www.arcadis.com/ en/australia/

●

$500,000 to $2 million

50%

20%

30%

NSW; QLD; WA

www.askwm.com

20%

VIC

www.blueenvironment. com.au

●

Eastern Environmental Consultants Pty Ltd

●

Environmental Resources Management Australia Pty ltd Equilibrium

●

Gemec GHD Pty Ltd

●

Golder

●

GreenTec Consulting

●

HDR

●

● ●

●

Impact Environmental Consulting

●

InSitu Advisory Pty Ltd JustWaste Consulting

● ●

●

LOGICUS Environmental Management

●

$500,000 to $2 million

20%

30%

●

$1 to $500,000

20%

40%

NSW

www.easternenviro. com.au

$2 million to $5 milion

60%

20%

ACT; NSW; QLD; VIC

www.envirocom.com.au

$500,000 to $2 million

20%

10%

20%

60%

ACT; NSW; QLD; SA; VIC; WA; NZ

www.erm.com

$500,000 to $2 million

10%

30%

QLD; VIC

www.equil.com.au

100%

www.gemec.com.au

40%

ACT; NSW; NT; QLD; SA; TAS; VIC; WA; NZ

www.ghd.com

50%

NSW; NT; QLD; SA; VIC; WA; NZ

www.golder.com

20%

NSW; NT; QLD; WA; NZ

www.greentecconsulting. com.au

90%

NSW; QLD; VIC

www.hdrinc.com

10%

NSW

Www.impactenviro. com.au

● ●

●

● ●

●

$500,000 to $2 million $5 million to $10 million

40%

10%

$5 million to $10 million

40%

10%

●

$500,000 to $2 million

60%

10%

●

$500,000 to $2 million

10%

●

$500,000 to $2 million

80%

10%

●

$500,000 to $2 million

30%

10%

●

$500,000 to $2 million

50%

●

$1 to $500,000

80%

$500,000 to $2 million

●

● ●

●

10%

60%

NSW; QLD

www.insituadvisory.com

50%

TAS; VIC

www.justwaste.com.au

10%

NSW

www.logicusem.com

30%

10%

60%

QLD

www.mraenvironmental. com.au

●

MRA Consulting Group

●

$2 million to $5 milion

40%

10%

40%

NSW

http://www. mraconsulting.com.au/

Rawtec

●

$500,000 to $2 million

30%

10%

20%

www.rawtec.com.au

Resource Innovations Pty Ltd

●

$500,000 to $2 million

10%

60%

30%

NSW; QLD

www.resourceinnovations. com.au

●

$2 million to $5 milion

50%

10%

40%

NSW; NT; QLD; VIC; WA; NZ

https://slrconsulting. com/au/

●

$1 to $500,000

30%

VIC

www.sru.net.au

Sustainable Resource Use

●

Talis Consultants

●

Tonkin Consulting Pty Ltd

●

30%

Mark Rigby & Associates Pty Ltd

SLR Consulting

●

10%

Private Sector

●

Design & engineering of facilities

●

Website Address

●

Office Locations

www.aprince.com.au

Federal Government

ACT; NSW; TAS

●

State Government

Procurement - tender development & evaluation, contract management

www.360green.com.au

60%

●

Local Government

Environmental approvals

NSW

10%

●

Revenue

Environmental/greenhouse management, reporting & compliance

10%

30%

●

Blue Environment Pty Ltd

EnviroCom Australia

40%

$2 million to $5 milion

Education, training & community consultation

ASK Waste Management

50%

●

Economic evaluation & modelling

Arcadis

$1 to $500,000 ●

●

Percentage of the amount of revenue earned in waste and resource recovery consultancy derived from each of these sectors

●

Strategy, policy & planning

● ●

Technology/infrastructure reviews & evaluation

360green A.Prince Consulting

Landfill - design, operation, gas, closure, rehabilitation etc

COMPANY NAME

Logistics - collection & transfer studies

All care was taken in compiling this Consultants Survey. No responsibility is accepted for accuracy. While the guidelines provided to consultants by Prime Creative Media stated that only demonstrable experience should be recorded, the information was provided solely by the consultant and does not present the opinions or recommendations of Prime Creative Media.

Waste auditing

CONSULTANTS LISTINGS

●

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

●

10%

●

$2 million to $5 milion

80%

20%

NSW; VIC; WA

www.talisconsultants. com.au

●

$500,000 to $2 million

60%

40%

NSW; NT; QLD; SA; VIC

www.tonkin.com.au

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

Equipment //

An engineered solution for firearm disposal A rendering of the plant from Brentwood’s modelling software.

By Jan Arreza BRENTWOOD Recycling Systems, Australian manufacturer and supplier of heavy-duty recycling and waste processing machinery, have provided for the Australian Federal Police (AFP) a 110kW AZ150W weapon shredding plant to assist with the safe and efficient destruction and disposal of seized firearms. Brentwood’s broad range of heavyduty industrial shredders are designed to be robust, efficient and give years of trouble-free service. Typically, Brentwood’s machines are used in recycling, manufacturing or processing industries for waste reduction or material recovery processes. Before the introduction of the custom-built unit, officers would have to cut down weapons to render them useless before disposing of them securely. The lengthy process would involve officers taking excessive time using hand operated equipment that exposed them to potentially dangerous operations. The AZ150W weapon shredding plant provided includes: • AZ150W Dual Shaft Shredder with 46

110kW drive and split cutting chamber; • Shredder in-feed hopper with split feed to shredder for small and large items; • Shredder support structure with interlocked safety gates to allow placement of bin under to receive shredded product; • In-feed Conveyor with split feed for small and large items; • Manual Loading Platform; and • Electrical control panel. The shredder cutting chamber is 1,458mm long and is split – one section 475mm long for small items fitted with 47mm wide cutters, and the other section 983mm long for large items fitted with 70mm wide cutters. Sizing of the output material is dependent upon the width of the cutters, the number of hooks, and the distance between each hook. Typically, the material will be the same width as the cutter and around 75-300mm in length. Longer pieces are possible depending upon the type of material and how it presents to the cutting zone. According to Graham Badman, Brentwood managing director, the

INSIDEWASTE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

shredder that Brentwood provided is an engineered solution that was specifically made with the requirements of the AFP in mind. “Its purpose is to shred a variety of weapons, particularly of the heavier variety. We’ve previously had shredders in use for lighter firearms, but the requirement here was heavier firearms such as double barrel shotguns and rifles,” Badman said. “The shredder is an engineered solution for this particular task, and it has some unique features like its split cutting chamber. It’s going to cover everything from small firearms right up to the larger ones, hand weapons like crossbows, and everything in between. “Previously, these items were destroyed by hand, or with very slow presses and crushing units. Brentwood provided them with a machine that is extremely efficient at getting rid of really tough items and a lot of things that they had a lot of difficulty getting rid of in the past.” No stranger to this type of heavyduty job, Brentwood previously provided a similar, yet smaller machine, for the NSW Police. It was because of this that they were approached by the

AFP for a similar solution. Brentwood have already provided the NSW Police a couple of these machines in the past few years, with the first one being provided around 15 years ago. “They came to us and gave us specific requirements, which was something that we haven’t done before with any of our existing machines,” Badman said. “We ended up back-hiring one of our own machines of a similar design and transported it back to our factory to run some tests. Through this, we proved to ourselves and to the AFP that we were accurate in our assessment and had the right machine to provide them with. “The testing was very successful, and we ended up developing some ideas around how the AFP could efficiently process the firearms. After this, the machine went through the normal tender and procurement stages and we were successful with that too. That process took a couple of years, and most of that time was spent getting approvals and capital to proceed, as well as working out the best way to get power for the plant secured and upgraded. “We engineered the plant around

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

// Equipment

the AFP’s site requirements, which were pretty restrictive. They had a very restrictive area where they could put this equipment, so we engineered a plant with an in-feed conveyor and a loading platform on to which they could load pallets of material that had to be put on the convey for destruction in the shredder. “Once we had to approvals and order to proceed, we had a four month build period to develop everything. It’s been in use now for about six months and it has been working very successfully. It is the only one of its size that is currently in operation.” Key features of the AZ150W shredder include: • Two x 55kW drives; • High torque/low speed drive; • 180mm hexagonal shaft for superior strength; • Wide ‘grab’ for shredding larger items; • Planetary reduction gearboxes; • High surface hardness/high core strength repairable alloy cutters; • DOL, High Torque Smart Start and Eco Vari Drive control options with auto reverse and overload protection; • Wide range of cutter widths and hook

types to suit different materials and output size requirements; • Wide range of in-feed and discharge options; and • Australian-made for Australian conditions. Suitable materials for shredding include: • High-carbide content double barrel shotguns; • High-tensile solid steel receivers (main functioning part of firearm); • All long-arms and handguns; • Knives; • Swords; • High-power electrical transformers with solid iron cores and copper armatures – weight approximately 3kgs; • High-power electronic ballasts used in conjunction with electrical transformers – weight approximately 2kgs; • Police issue handcuffs; • Police issue batons; • Body armour plates; • Car tyres; and • Computer hard drives. “When you do something new like this it certainly opens up new opportunities and we hope that we can make some

The heart of the Firearms Destruction plant is the Brentwood Az150W-11kW Dual Shaft Shredder.

gains on that, because certainly we think this is a good solution for this specific problem,” Badman said. “We have machines in Australia and other countries around the world, especially within police departments and defence forces who are conducting weapons disposals. And we’ll keep developing our machines to go into even more different applications by tailoring

and modifying innovative solutions for particular client requirements. “Despite this, we predominantly work within the Australian and New Zealand markets because we provide the backup and support to service these machines. That is all done inhouse and the people that are servicing the machines are also the ones that are manufacturing them.” iw

Waste audits = apc • Landfill/transfer station • Feedstock WtE • Calorific /moisture • Data analysis

• Containers • Kerbside • Litter • Material flow

We can sort it out! Call our team 02 9907 0994 email: admin@aprince.com.au www.aprince.com.au

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

Equipment //

Fuchs MHL335: Gaining a foothold in the market

Heavy recycling loads requiring precise handling are easily dealt with using the mobile material handler.

By Kim Hansen RECYCLERS AUSTRALIA, specialist in scrap metal and waste management, manages collection of all sorts of general waste, skip bin hire, complete commercial metal management plans, and everything in between. It operates all across Queensland, Victoria and NSW. Bin It Now’s skip bin transfer station, located at the Recyclers Australia Yatala headquarters, is fast becoming a major force in the skip bin hire business in Brisbane, Logan and on the Gold Coast. With bins ranging from one-to-50 cubic metres, Bin It Now is working closely with all sectors of the construction industry, as well as having a strong foothold in the consumer market. Along with Recyclers Australia, Bin It Now is committed to developing strategies that enhance a circular economy. Currently, Recyclers Australia has a fleet of 13 trucks on the roads in Brisbane and exports to a range of countries including India, South Korea, Indonesia, China, Pakistan and more, 48

with the latest equipment addition to Recyclers Australia’s fleet being a Fuchs MHL335 material handler. Alan Morgan, director and trading manager at Recyclers Australia has played a key role in the development and growth of the company. Morgan has over 37 years of experience in the industry and was instrumental in the growth of the recycling industry throughout the South Pacific Islands, having developed the largest scrap metal collection business in Papua New Guinea and Fiji. “We have four material handlers, including a Fuchs MHL350 and we’ve had our newest machine, the Fuchs MHL335 for a couple of months now,” Morgan said. “When I make purchase decisions, I rely on my operators’ feedback and experiences with different brands and machines. We do 40-50 containers per week and use the Fuchs machines to load the containers and high-speed baling machines, so the material handlers need to be reliable, fast and efficient. The Fuchs machines tick all those boxes.

INSIDEWASTE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

“Another key thing for us is aftersales support and service. We have two mechanics who look at all machines before we buy them and determine the ease of service and accessibility. The other aspect is parts – Fuchs parts are more easily accessible than some other brands on the market and the support by the Fuchs agent, Onetrak, has been excellent.” One of the current operators, Pat, has 10 years of experience operating material handlers and has previously operated a range of different brands, including a Fuchs MHL350 material handler, which is the next couple of sizes up from the new Fuchs MHL335. “The Fuchs MHL335 is fitted with the F series cabin. The sliding door on the new cabin is a great design feature and it makes it easier to open and access the machine in tight spaces” Pat said. “Visibility from the cab is great and the controls are very smooth. I get about a week out of a tank of fuel, so the machine is very fuel efficient. I operate the machine for eight hour shifts and still find it very comfortable

at the end of the day. The cab has a built-in drink bottle cooler, which is a great feature on warm days, and it’s something I haven’t seen it in any other machine.” According to David Stuart, regional manager at Onetrak, since the company took over the Fuchs distribution in Australia, the focus has been on aftersales support and growing the infrastructure around this product line. “The new, award-winning F series Fuchs cabin has been a great success, along other key features such as the new sealed points at operator level. It is a new exciting phase for Fuchs material handlers in Australia,” Stuart concluded. The Fuchs MHL335 material handler specifications include: • Weight: 24-26.7 tonnes • Power: 115kW • Reach: 10.7-12m • 0.6m grab Kim Hansen is the marketing manager at Onetrak, a national dealer for construction equipment, forestry equipment, crushing and screening, and material handlers. iw

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

// Equipment

Best of the old partnered with the best of the new By Jan Arreza BOASTING increased production and capacity, the environmentally friendly, regenerative air-type GS6 Tempest road sweeper is built with a generous sixcubic metre stainless steel hopper, a 96kW John Deere auxiliary engine, and a full-width sweep head and side brooms, all of which has helped make it the best seller in the Schwarze range. A proven performer in the field, the GS6 Tempest excels in all applications – from leaf and sand collection, to sweeping street festivals and airports, and everything in between. The GS6 Tempest also comes with many inclusions, such as new in-cab technology, advanced control display, console and joystick, and has been designed with operator comfort and safety in mind. Its full width suction head makes it ideal for road surfacing applications.

A proven performer in the field, the GS6 Tempest excels in all sweeper applications.

“Other brand sweepers require the operator to ‘steer’ the brooms to keep them in the curb. On the Schwarze unit, the operator sets the GEO distance to the desired curb to broom contact amount, then they just need to drive and let the broom system do its thing and automatically follow the curb.” The advanced control display includes: • Optional single-hand control that allows the operator to adjust all critical functions on the fly, allowing the operator to maintain continuous eye contact with the road. • Hi-resolution display with graphical representation of all the sweep gear, which keeps the operator informed of operations in real-time. • Real-time engine-load and fueluse display for best fuel economy management. • Real-time diagnostic screens for troubleshooting. It also comes with the Schwarze exclusive in-cab Gutterbroom Extension Override (GEO) and automatic curbfollowing broom, which takes the guesswork out of the equation. The GEO brings increased usability of gutter brooms and incorporates a low-pressure, low-volume water-spray system with water held in a removable UV-resistant polyprothlene tank. The GS6 Tempest also has several industry-leading features that position

it at the head of its class. These include the Schwarze WhisperWheel fan system, which lets Schwarze air sweepers run over 70 per cent quieter, with up to 20 per cent less fuel consumption, and seven per cent more power than an open-face fan design. “There are several key features that differentiate the Schwarze product from its competitors. First, the one-touch operation that reduces fatigue and enhances safety and productivity,” said Daniel Mchugh, Garwood managing director. “Other brand sweepers require the operator to ‘steer’ the brooms to keep them in the curb. On the Schwarze unit, the operator sets the GEO distance to the desired curb-to-broom contact amount, then they just need to drive and let the broom system do its thing and automatically follow the curb. “Finally, the fuel economy display allows the operator to fine-tune the sweeper engine to the minimum power required to get the job done, which helps a lot in terms of saving fuel and reducing wear and noise.” iw

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

info.ajg.com.au/waste-recycling

02 4979 3357

Don’t let one event lay waste to years of work A string of high-profile fires at major waste and recycling plants has led to increasing insurance premiums for businesses in the sector. Gallagher specialises in helping waste management and recycling businesses minimise their risks, and in tailoring insurance programs to fit their needs. We’re the real experts in this space. Don’t waste your time with anyone else...

Need advice? Call Gallagher’s Mary Rolph on 02 4979 3357 or email mary.rolph@ajg.com.au

Cover is subject to the Policy terms and conditions. You should consider if the insurance is suitable for you and read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Financial Services Guide (FSG) before making a decision to acquire insurance. These are available at www.ajg.com.au. REF2377-0119-1.1

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

Dimensions: 6,008mm x 3,048mm x 2,505mm Gross weight: 8.5-tonne Hopper capacity: 3.6m³ Water tank: 750L Dust Suppression System Fuel tank: Chassis dependent Turning circle: Chassis dependent Max sweeper width: 3,048mm Max Sweep Speed: 25km/h Key users: Mounted on an Isuzu NQR 400, the versatile Schwarze A4 Storm high dump sweeper is ideally suited for councils with small town areas, or inner-city councils with narrow streets. Base price: P.O.A. More: www.garwoodinternational.com.au or 02 9756 3756

Company: Garwood International

Dimensions: 7,320mm x 3,400mm x 3,000mm Gross weight: 14-tonne to 15.5-tonne Hopper capacity: 6m³ Water tank: 946L Dust Suppression System Fuel tank: Chassis dependent Turning circle: Chassis dependent Max sweeper width: 3,404mm Max Sweep Speed: 25km/h Key users: The biggest seller in the Schwarze range, the GS6 Tempest has been specifically designed to meet the needs of urban councils and sweeping contractors. Base price: P.O.A. More: www.garwoodinternational.com.au or 02 9756 3756

Boschung S2 Urban-Sweeper

Company: Garwood International

Schwarze A4 Storm

SE6T

Dimensions: 4,300mm x 1,150mm x 1,990mm Gross weight: 3,500kg Hopper capacity: 2m³ /1,200kg Water tank: 340L (150L recycling, 190L fresh) Fuel tank: 60L Turning circle: 6, 650mm Max sweeper width: 2,300mm (2,600mm with third broom) Max speed travel & clean: Working speed 0-18km/h, Transit speed 0-40km/h Key users: S2 has been specifically developed for inner-city environments. Base price: P.O.A. More: www.garwoodinternational.com.au or 02 9756 3756

Dimensions: 4,400mm x 2,300mm x 1750mm Gross weight: 1.5-tonne Fuel tank: 50L Engine: Kohler Max sweeper width: 2,000mm Max speed travel & clean: 20km/h Key users: Rural councils, road construction and road maintenance companies Base price: P.O.A. More: www.garwoodinternational. com.au or 02 9756 3756

Tennant 6,100 Sub Compact Ride on Sweeper

Tennant S30 Mid-size Ride on Sweeper

Dimensions: 1,520L x 810W x 1180H mm Gross weight: 503kg Water tank: N/A Fuel tank: Battery-powered Turning circle: 1,830mm Max sweeper width: 2 brushes – 970mm Max speed travel & clean: 8.0km/h Base price: P.O.A. More: 1800 226 846 or contactus@tennantco.com

Dimensions: 2,360L x 1,590W x 1,475H mm Gross weight: 1,620kg Hopper capacity: 395L Water tank: N/A Fuel tank: Petrol/LPG/Diesel Turning circle: 2,870mm Max sweeper width: 2 brushes – 2,032mm Max speed travel & clean: 13.0km/h Key users: Base price: P.O.A. More: 1800 226 846 or contactus@tennantco.com

Tennant Australia

Schwarze GS6 Tempest

Company: Garwood International

Product profile: Sweepers //

Tennant Australia

Tennant 800 Large Industrial Ride On Sweeper

Dimensions: 3050L x 1780W x 1330H mm Gross weight: 2,948kg Hopper capacity: 850L Water tank: N/A Fuel tank: Petrol/LPG/Diesel Turning circle: 3,430mm Max sweeper width: 1,680mm Max speed travel & clean: 16km/h Base price: P.O.A. More: 1800 226 846 or contactus@tennantco.com

INSIDEWASTE FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019

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Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

// Wasted Space

Wasted Space: oh tipper, you ripper US FOLKS at the Wasted Space desk were having a heated debate on what to hail our loyal readers as. In the end, it was down to two: Wastesiders or Wastetronauts. We have decided that we’re not thoughtlessly dropping the sword on this one (unlike some countries) and want to prove that we live in a democracy. So, we are putting this to the vote – your vote. And, unlike the red-tape shenanigans that our industry seems to be facing all the time with policymakers (promises, dangling carrots or otherwise), we will deliver a swift decision on this one by the next issue. While we, at Wasted Space, are firm advocates of speed in decisions, we are all about safety and reliability too. We call on all our readers to be safe on the roads – while driving or being ready to save someone (or something) in need. So, earlier this January one of our local news outlets reported of a bloke who managed to start 2019 like a real action movie. Get this – he landed his Holden Astra into the back of a tipper truck somewhere in the western part of Sydney. He survived (to our great relief), but like all techies, our attention was quickly diverted to other facts.

According to reports, apparently the driver in question managed to “hit a trailer ramp, causing him to flip and land in the rear of the parked truck”. While we applaud our NSW firefighters for their quick response in freeing our newly minted stuntman (we’re certain the police are making sure a sequel is not in the works anytime soon…) to safety, one of us here at Wasted Space then actually posed a curious question – what was the make of the tipper truck? And why should we care? Well, that is because it tanked the flying car and (we are pretty sure) is still in working condition! A few phone calls later, we were (unfortunately) denied any further details, due to the case pending further investigation. But wow, can you imagine a two-tonne vehicle flying through the air off a ramp at high velocity and landing hard? The impact alone would have torn through most civilian vehicles, but not this tipper. When we looked at the actual picture, the car was sticking out of the tipper truck while the truck was still sitting there, intact! Why did we want to know so badly? To give the makers of that truck a medal! That’s a ripper of a tipper, that’s why!

This is what all of us in the industry need more of – reliability. If we can’t have reliable and dependable policy decisions, at least we can depend on reliable equipment, can’t we? If we could

make up a category for the next Inside Waste Awards called the Wasted Space Safety and Reliability Choice Award, that’s a strong, early candidate right there!

biggest and most influential parties in the Australian retail fashion industry. The conference will help bring to light, on a corporate level, the changes that are going to largely effect fashions profitability over the next 5-10 years. www.australiancircular fashion.com.au

April 1-2 National Sustainability Conference 2019 Hotel Grand Chancellor, Brisbane The annual National Sustainability Conference will be looking at current topics and also looking forward to emerging sustainability considerations. The educational program will include sustainability research, participation from diverse industry sectors and topics of integration, technology, automation, climate risk, procurement, renewable energy and sustainable construction. www.conference.sustainability.asn.au

Australia. Attracting over 630 delegates both nationally and internationally, the conference is targeted at anyone who works in, or has an interest in waste management issues, with particular relevance to local government. www.coffswasteconference.com. au/2019

DIARY March 20-22 19th International Automobile Recycling Congress 2019 Vienna Marriott Hotel, Austria The congress is a platform for industry to exchange the latest information in the space of recycling in the automotive sector. Attending this conference will enable you to access unique, high-quality content, to learn from experts about the latest developments in the management of end of life vehicles, and to network with an interdisciplinary group from around the world. www.icm.ch/iarc-2019 March 21 The Australian Circular Fashion Conference St. Kilda Town Hall, Melbourne The conference’s aim is to first and foremost educate and start important conversations with the

March 26-29 2019 Australian Landfill & Transfer Stations Conference Pullman Mercure, Brisbane The Waste Management Association of Australia will be hosting the 2019 Australian Landfill & Transfer Stations Conference. The four-day program will include keynote presentations from both International and Australian experts, technical tours, workshops, concurrent sessions and networking opportunities. www.landfill.com.au

Daily news updates at www.insidewaste.com.au

May 14-16 Waste 2019 Conference Opal Cover Resort, Coffs Harbour The Coffs Harbour Waste Conference is the leading conference for the waste management industry in

May 27-29 CSIRO Cutting Edge Science and Engineering Symposium 2019 CSIRO Clayton, Victoria The symposium aims to showcase international and national cuttingedge research in waste innovation and circular economy, as well as provide a forum to discuss the development of innovative and sustainable waste practices in Australia. Schedule, speaker information and information to delegates to be updated soon.

FEBRUARY/MARCH 2019 INSIDEWASTE

MOBILE EDDY CURRENTS AND WINDSIFTERS NOW AVAILABLE - Tracked mobile eddy current separator using a powerful magnetic field to separate ferrous and non-ferrous metals. - Includes crawler tracks, an on-board diesel generator (or can be powered by mains power) and hydraulic power pack. - Can be transported on a low loader trailer without permits.

EDDY CURRENT ECS 1500 - Tracked mobile air separator using powerful air fans to separate waste based on its density. - Separates into two light and heavies. - Includes crawler tracks, an on-board diesel generator (or can be powered by mains power) and hydraulic power pack. - Can be transported on a low loader trailer without permits.

WINDSIFTER ROTARY AST 1500

MACHINES FOR SALE OR HIRE

WASTE HANDLERS

CBI GRINDERS

MID SPEED SHREDDERS

TROMMELS

NSW | VIC | QLD | SA | TAS | PNG

SLOW SPEED SHREDDERS

RECYCLING SCREENS

CALL TODAY 1800 777 300 | sales@finlay.com.au | www.finlay.com.au