Visy: https://www.visy.com.au/recycling/about, 9. The manufacturing industry – in particular – is in less shambles than we initially expected it to be. Glass is 100 per cent recyclable, and can be recycled and reprocessed indefinitely. The Guardian. The impact on Australia’s waste management operators will be huge. Within Australia, 500,000 computers were recycled in the year 2006. Christmas Waste Facts Australia From unwanted gifts to uneaten food, Australia’s Christmas waste facts are hard to swallow. Goulburn Waste Management Centre opening to the public on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday from 8 am-2 pm. [2], The national recycling industry has been under pressure since 2018, when China, the biggest importer of recyclable waste from Australia, placed stringent restrictions on waste imports, effectively closing the door to a large proportion of Australian recycling exports. "Twelve per cent of our plastics are recycled in this country. We produce a lot of plastic waste, for one thing, and we've yet to develop large, sustainable markets in Australia for recycled plastic products. How much of an impact can recycling make? “If everyone recycled one plastic bag, those materials could be reused in making 28,906 park benches or, according to Tex data,144,530 16-foot composite deck boards. Prepared for the Australia Department of the Environment and Energy by Blue Environment Pty Ltd and Randell Environmental Consulting. Confidential Paper Disposal Bins 2020 : What You Need To Know About Shredding! Examining plastic use in Australia An alarming amount of lightweight plastic comes from supermarkets across Australia; a 2016 report from NSW EPA estimates the figure stands at around 75 percent. http://www.sustainability.vic.gov.au/You-and-Your-Home/Waste-and-recycling/Recycling/Recycling-. The average domestic bin contains 60% organic material, with the bulk coming from food (40%) and garden waste (20%). 'National Waste Report 2018' page 31. Let’s ask two questions re does recycling go to landfill -How Much Recyclable Material Ends Up In Landfills? In recent news, a “new era for the economy” was born, thanks to the COVID-19. Things have certainly changed when the pandemic occurred. But, according to a 2011 government report, Australia generates roughly 50 million tonnes of waste a year, around 50-60% of which is recycled. While this may at first seem like a great figure, compare it to the 1.6 million simply thrown away, 1.8 million in storage and 5.3 million simply sitting unused on shelves and gathering dust. Obviously, the lockdown now prevents us from buying and importing all sorts of in-demand products. A target to reduce the total waste generated by every Australian by 10 per cent by 2030, Divert 80 per cent of waste from landfill by 2030. Therefore, contractors could face huge losses. Various paper recycling and appliance recycling services are available. Of the 15.7 million computers that reached their 'end of life' in Australia in 2007-08, only 1.5 million were recycled - that's less the 10% (footnote 3) . From 2 million masks a year, it will sky-rocket into a potential 50 million this year. Female Sanitary Bins 2020 : Reliable, Low Cost Sanitary Services For Business, Secure Document Destruction 2020 : All About Security Bins Shredding, Commingled Recycling 2020 : Why Commingled Bin Is Key To Recycling, Rubbish Removal Sydney 2020 ✅: Better Bin Collections For Business. The Statement "Twelve per cent of our plastics are recycled in this country. Visy: https://www.visy.com.au/there-is-a-better-way 10. In related news, Goulburn currently faced a problem when Endeavour Industries, a Goulburn recycler, indefinitely suspended its contract with the council to ensure its workers their safety from the COVID-19 virus. Much of this is in January 30, 2019: https://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/resources/3f275bb3-218f-4a3d-ae1d-424ff4cc52cd/files/australian-plastics-recycling-survey-report-2017-18.pdf 7. “This website says that in San Francisco recyclers are able to earn $30-$50 per day if they collected full time.” Not much money for very dirty and tiring work – i.e. Legislative requirements vary from state to territory; some councils that collect our kerbside recycling bins can process recycled material themselves, while others rely on contractors. Recycling 1 plastic bottle saves enough energy to power a computer for 25 minutes. Many materials can be used to fuel power-stations also if they can not be directly recycled. So, we quote below: “In the U.S. alone, over 20 billion diapers are thrown out a year, accounting for over 3.5 million tons of waste.”, “Only about 5% of all plastics in the U.S. are actually recycled.”, “It takes 70% less energy to recycle paper than to make it from raw material.”, “In the late 1800s, peddlers acted as early recyclers. 'Recycling crisis: landowners face millions in clean-up costs after SKM collapse', by Ben Butler and Josh Taylor. See our blog on small business waste management and contract terms. Recycling Bins Australia 2020 ♲: Recycling Can Boost Your Profits! Replas: https://www.replas.com.au/recycling/, * AAP FactCheck is accredited by the Poynter Institute's International Fact-Checking Network, which promotes best practice through a stringent and transparent Code of Principles. This includes changes in schedules like: You may have read in our recent blogs how the changes in legislation by the Chinese Government are having real impacts on waste management practices in Australia. Producing new plastic requires oil and coal, and is a large contributor to greenhouse gas emissions which play a big part in climate change. These changes can make a huge difference to our environment. Furthermore, East Waste, a South Australian waste management company, says that it will consider reducing their services if their drivers continue to fall ill to the Coronavirus or self-quarantine, all to reduce the risks involved. Of course, make sure you come back to our website on a regular basis to check the latest information on all things related to recycling! The article explains: “the list of things you can recycle for money is quite long. We receive many phone calls from people seeking free cardboard collection. [3], In August 2019, one of the largest Australian recycling companies SKM collapsed, leaving tens of thousands of tonnes of Victorian kerbside recycling stockpiled and destined largely for landfill. They would consider reducing general waste collection to just once every fortnight, while their recycling and green waste collection will stop altogether. Sources: Newspaper and TV coverage has highlighted the instances of recycling collections being brought to landfill – and China turning back recycling exports. When it comes to paper and cardboard recycling rates, Australia is one of the world leaders at 87%. 'Scott Morrison to push premiers to improve 'appalling' record on plastic recycling', by Sarah Martin. With these problems stated, the government has been in and out of the planning room, drawing up ways to mitigate the recycling crisis at hand. So, all is not lost. As a result, the Goulburn Mulwaree Council turned to a Hume operator for its waste recycling services. Prime Minister Scott Morrison was seeking agreement from state governments on plastic recycling at the first post-election Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting on Friday, August 9. Also, everyone recycling just one can reduce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to taking 6,750 passenger cars off the road and save energy equivalent to 80 thousand barrels of oil. The issue for Australia is that we need a recycling plan that will make it financially viable to recycle in Australia – and that will require off-takers of the recycled product in this country. Though burdensome, to them, this is a safer method compared to incineration. Depending on where you live, other common items like plastic bottles, aluminium cans, and glass bottles can be recycled at specialty recycling centres around town.”. [1] [2] AAP FactCheck examined Mr Morrison's claim that only 12 per cent of Australia's waste plastic was recycled. Plastics recycling in Australia includes work undertaken by packaging giant Visy, which reprocesses 95,000 tonnes of plastic each year, largely turning it into food and drink packaging. South Australians, in particular, could see their kerbside collection reduced – or even suspended – if the COVID-19 pesters the waste and recycling industry, according to a report. Plastic bags can be recycled on a small level by utilising the RedCycle service in participating supermarkets. It is estimated to double in size in the next 5 years.”. But, let us say that we exert a bit (but still felt) of effort in recycling and waste management here in Australia; there can still be loads of benefits we can enjoy if we increase our recycling efforts, along with proper waste management. With procurement in Australia being worth about $600b annually, and a large percentage of that being government procurement, the end markets for recycled plastics, metals, glass, paper, e-waste and tyres are there. make packaging 100 per cent recyclable and compostable; turn plastic packaging at least 70 per cent recyclable or compostable; include 50 per cent of average recycled products in packaging; and. You can also see our services and costs in our online waste shop for all your bin requirements such as general waste here: Waster wants to share some recycling facts not just in Australia, but in the USA, too, because we also have some readers hailing from there. We provide all waste and recycling services from bin collection, grease trap services and sanitary bins on flexible 30-day agreements. Household recycling is encouraged through the use of recycling bins. Most of its rainfall soaks into the ground. Additionally, if you liked this on recycling facts Australia, we published another infographic here on office recycling bins. They would carry sacks of reusable items in their wagons to sell to general stores.”, “A plastic bag from the grocery store takes between 500 years and 1,000 years to degrade. Waste that would normally be sent to the tip is reused, resulting in less space required for landfill and less need for more waste disposal facilities. August 2, 2019. The most likely way for a person to make money is recycling bottles and cans – due to the combination of value, weight and competition in the market. A total of 293 900 tonnes of plastics were recycled in 2016–17, which is a fall of 10 per cent from 2015–16 recovery. Recycling in Australia is a widespread but not comprehensive part of waste management in Australia. 1. Recycling electronic waste is an expensive and intricate process. But, what about the state of Australian waste recycling? These are only contingency plans they will implement if needed; this would only happen in the worst-case scenario. Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Based on this evidence, AAP FactCheck found Mr Morrison's claim to be true. Mr Morrison labelled Australia's record on recycling "appalling" and said the current situation was "breaking the faith" with Australians who were doing the right thing. At the end of the day, even if you do not make much money, a better way to think of it is how much a business can save, as disposing of in general waste is almost always more expensive. https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/assets/downloads/EllenMacArthurFoundation_TheNewPlasticsEconomy_Pages.pdf The Agency uses this information to measure the success of materials management programs across the country and to characterize the national waste stream. The contract, which dated back to 2018, was supposed to be valid for 5 years. But, Waster is certainly hopeful that everything will get better in the future – even with everything that transpired this 2020. iii SUMMARY Australia is a large continent with only a small population to husband its land and water resources. Only 12% of plastic waste is recycled. If 10 Our waste collection and resource recovery industry are also very fragmented. Including tyres, total plastics On this same topic of recycling facts Australia, see our blog on waste reduction. See a blog on waste disposal near me here. Australia is one of the world’s top ten consumers of electronic goods, buying more than 4 million computers and 3 million televisions every year. 'Scott Morrison to push premiers to improve 'appalling' record on plastic recycling', by Sarah Martin. Through our flexible 30 day agreements and high quality customer service – you can say goodbye to lock in contracts and hidden fees. And as recent media cov… But, according to a 2011 government report, Australia generates roughly 50 million tonnes of waste a year, around 50-60% of which is recycled.” See our blog on the value of waste here. They just We, of course, need more detail on what the policy will really mean. The energy saved by recycling one plastic drink bottle can power a computer for 25 minutes. Fewer than 1% of TVs and around 10% of PCs and laptops are recycled Australia wide E-waste is responsible for 70% of the toxic chemicals such as lead, cadmium and mercury found in landfill - and 23,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions would be saved if half of the televisions discarded annually were recycled 4m3 of landfill Australians are now collectively spending around $11 billion a year on Christmas gifts. 5min50sec interview mark: https://7news.com.au/politics/federal-politics/scott-morrison-rules-out-increasing-newstart-payments-c-379300?fbclid=IwAR0cEDm2naBm1rAUFbqVU6-mjhiFuHeH_tRqS54l5qMoMrAh25SWteVA0Ro 8. Australia and many developed nations have availed of the Chinese willingness to accept recyclable commodities and basically waste. The economic value of a tonne of recycled material is manifold – as it reduced the need for new materials, tree cutting, reduces air pollution and removes many million tonnes of waste from landfill. [5] Another report, the 2017-18 Australian Plastics Recycling Survey commissioned by the Australian, Victorian, New South Wales and West Australian governments and published in January 2019, arrived at a lower 9.4 per cent recycling rate but stated the figure may be conservative as it was based on waste from short-term use such as packaging. http://ausfpa.com.au/about/pulp-paper/ Recycling facts Australia: We all know (or at least the vast majority of us do) that recycling is a good thing for the environment Recycling has certainly got some bad press in recent years. 31,780 litres of water. That’s more than enough to fill more than 4,500 Olympic sized swimming pools! Here we’ve compiled some recycling facts Australia needs to know about!