FEATURED TOPIC – ORGANICS
Food for the soil
Repurpose It is closing the loop for organics recycling.
REPURPOSE IT PUTS PRECIOUS RESOURCES BACK INTO THE EARTH.
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epurpose It has never set out to be a traditional waste management company. Resource recovery and a circular economy have always been the key drivers. As George Hatzimanolis, Chief Executive Officer explains, it has always been about adding value to the community, customers and the environment more broadly. Those core principles are now being implemented as Repurpose It closes the loop for organics recycling. Food and organic waste from all sectors is being turned into mulch and compost at the company’s advanced organics facility in Victoria. A 3000-square metre decontamination hall for packaged and unpackaged food waste was commissioned at the end of 2021 and is now operational. With a combination of mechanical and automated systems, the facility will process up
to 200,000 tonnes annually of food waste at capacity. An open windrow compost pile is also operational, and a decontamination shed for in vessel composting tunnels is expected to be commissioned later in 2022. George says the facility is “full steam ahead” and processing more volume than anticipated, including organics from waste recyclers who have reached their capacity. “There are some volume constraints in the organics market at the moment,” he says. “A lot of long-term tenders and existing facilities are pushing toward the tail end, but volumes have ramped up and more food organics are ending up in waste streams. “Repurpose It is servicing the needs of its commercial and local government customers but is helping other wasterecyclers.”
George says a Victorian Government waste policy target to divert 80 per cent of organics from landfill by 2030 is encouraging more councils to introduce food organics garden organics (FOGO) services. That, combined with above average rainfall in 2021-22 which provided optimal growing conditions for gardens, created a perfect storm for organics recycling. It also creates new opportunities. “Organics in landfill is one of the largest methane and CO2 emitters of any waste stream,” George says. “Obviously to mitigate the impacts to our climate it’s important we find ways to capture the organic waste stream and divert it from landfill. The more we recycle and recover the better placed we are to do that. “But there’s also opportunity around soil health. Decarbonisation of soils is serious. We have an opportunity to add carbon back and improve soil
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