EVENTS
Circular presentations DELEGATES AT THIS YEAR’S AWRE WILL BE ABLE TO EXPLORE A RANGE OF UNIQUE APPROACHES TO WASTE AND RESOURCE RECOVERY.
Hitachi Zosen Inova’s Marc Stammbach says AWRE seminars are an excellent opportunity to meet and address industry stakeholders.
I
n 2018, the Australia and New Zealand Recycling Platform (ANZRP) announced plans to build the world’s first commercial e-waste plastic micro-factory after receiving a $250,000 grant from Sustainability Victoria. In partnership with UNSW SMaRT Centre and e-recycler TES, the microfactory will process up to 500,000 kilograms of waste plastic per year. This will be recovered from e-waste recycling and reformed into 3D printer filament for retail sale. Worldwide demand for plastic 3D printer filament is estimated to triple during the next three years, reaching
58 / WMR / September 2020
a value of more than USD$1,965.30 million by 2023. Warren Overton, CEO of ANZRP, says the e-waste plastic micro-factory is a truly circular economy approach that ensures materials are kept in productive use. “As the volume of e-waste continues to increase, technologically advanced approaches such as micro-factories will play a key role mitigating the impact of old televisions and computers,” he says. According to Overton, e-waste recycling logistics are significant in terms of cost, making the process often prohibitive for regional and
remote communities. “Rather than bringing the waste to Melbourne, we’re bring the factory to the waste,” he says. The micro-factory has the potential to scale and accommodate the 6000-tonne plastic feedstock that is currently produced each year from the e-waste recycled through the TechCollect program. “We have taken the first step with a scalable solution that has guaranteed feedstock, strong environmental benefits, as well as economic benefits through the creation of employment opportunities in regional and remote parts of Australia.”
