Inside Waste Weekly

Monday, 6 September 2010

GENERAL STORIES

[ 503 Results - Showing Results 1 to 30 ]

Jumbo bins will change the industry: SULO
(Tuesday, 31 August 2010)

Brisbane City Council’s Lord Mayor, Campbell Newman, last week inspected the first, new “jumbo” bins for domestic recycling and officially invited Brisbane residents to upgrade their existing bins. The unveiling was the culmination of many years of work from bin maker, SULO Australia, in creating what it considers to be the ultimate bin for the Australian market.
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VIC EPA to conduct review into hazardous waste
(Tuesday, 31 August 2010)

At an industry briefing last week, Victorian EPA boss John Merritt discussed the review that industry had been expecting, coming just two months after a scathing appraisal of the agency by Victoria's Auditor-General. Since the findings of the report were released in June, prescribed waste contractors have seen an increase in inspections said Veolia Environmental Services’ Matt Stanelos.
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New specification for recycled materials in road making
(Tuesday, 31 August 2010)

With the aid of funding from the West Australian Landfill Levy Fund, Curtin University and ARRB Group have prepared a draft specification targeted at industry and local government for the use of recycled construction and demolition (C&D) materials in road building. This could potentially increase demand for recycled concrete which has been limited in its uptake in Western Australia.
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Sims records full-year profit despite lower revenues
(Tuesday, 31 August 2010)

Sims Metal Management has announced revenue for the last financial year of $7.5 billion and a net profit after tax of $126.7 million – up from a loss of $150.3 million a year ago. Sims expects that ferrous scrap prices may further increase in the near-term due to the limited supply available in the market, but would not be pressed on a more specific outlook for 2011.
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NT UPDATE: Cleaning up in an Australian hotspot
(Tuesday, 31 August 2010)

A successful community clean up event or campaign is not defined solely by the quantity or quality of material that is collected, although these two factors are great for reporting and benchmarking. If a clean up initiative finds momentum and support within the community then it is more likely to find ongoing success in subsequent years, particularly if it is driven from outside the conventional waste management industries, writes Shenagh Gamble.
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Debate raises questions over affect of CDS on kerbside recycling
(Tuesday, 24 August 2010)

We might be waiting for the release of the Regulatory Impact Statement into a national container deposit system (CDS), but the debate still rages on possible impacts on waste contractors and recyclers of such a system. Contractors and MRF operators fear that kerbside recycling could be reduced under CDS while proponents claim that the current system would be better off.
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New glass reprocessing plant to open in WA
(Tuesday, 24 August 2010)

Disposal of glass bottles will no longer present the problem it currently does in Western Australia when the new plant run by Colmax is opened by Environment Minister, Donna Faragher on August 26. The facility will once again provide a local option for reprocessing and stop the practice of sending waste glass to South Australia.
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Waste in the ‘new green’ economy: report
(Tuesday, 24 August 2010)

With reports from the US-based Global Footprint Network that from last weekend, August 21 in fact, humanity had consumed all nature’s “ecological services budget” for the year, it’s perhaps timely to look at the opportunities presented by ‘greening’ economies rather than just achieving low carbon economies.
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WA UPDATE: E-waste, the next ‘big thing’
(Tuesday, 24 August 2010)

Electronic waste (or e-waste) is, apparently, the next big thing in waste management. Depending on who you believe, it is variously polluting, harmless, trendy, pointless and an issue. Where there is little disagreement is that e-waste is growing in quantity and profile. By Adam Johnson.
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Industry groups continue criticism of QLD waste proposal
(Tuesday, 17 August 2010)

Queensland’s draft waste strategy has again come under fire from industry as the submission period on the 10-year plan closed yesterday. The Queensland Department of Environment, which is managing the renewed waste strategy, said it is not sure whether details of submissions to the strategy will be made publicly available, drawing the fire of the waste industry.
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Testing greenhouse profiles for food waste processes
(Tuesday, 17 August 2010)

The Federal Government has given funding to a project to test the greenhouse emissions profile of a range of processing technologies for food industry waste, including stockpiling, aerated pile composting, turned windrow composting and direct land application. Simplified life cycle assessments will also help determine the environmental performance of the tested options.
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Council upgrades waste management facility
(Tuesday, 17 August 2010)

Blue Mountains City Council last week opened a $7 million upgrade to the Katoomba Waste Management Facility, including a new waste transfer station and expansion of the existing resource recovery facilities. It has closed the Katoomba landfill and will haul all the waste to the Blaxland landfill.
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New Zealand update: Closing the loop with product stewardship
(Tuesday, 17 August 2010)

The Waste Minimisation Act (WMA) introduced new opportunities and responsibilities for product stewardship for both priority and non-priority products in New Zealand. In the six short months since launching the voluntary accreditation process, the Minister for the Environment has accredited three voluntary schemes. By Marion Short.
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E-waste programs aim to raise public awareness
(Tuesday, 17 August 2010)

The mobile phone recycling program, MobileMuster, and Landcare Australia are combining forces to encourage Australians to hand in their old and broken mobile phones, batteries and accessories for recycling. For every kilogram of mobile phones received by October 31, a tree will be planted in one of five key coastal areas across Australia.
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Pollies must keep recycling top of mind, says industry
(Tuesday, 10 August 2010)

Recycling and waste management organisations have joined forces with green groups to put continued pressure on the major political parties to support the industry through policy and legislation. They are hoping to see a bipartisan commitment to product stewardship legislation, for starters.
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SA recycler says plastic exports on the rise
(Tuesday, 10 August 2010)

South Australia-based recycler Adelaide Resource Recovery (ARR) has reported strong overseas demand after exporting more than 500 tonnes of waste plastic to China since late last year.
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SA targets 75% household waste recycling
(Tuesday, 10 August 2010)

SA has released a draft five-year waste management plan aiming to recycle 75% of SA’s household waste, up from the current rate of 55%. SA Environment Minister Paul Caica says the target is “ambitious but achievable”. The SA EPA yesterday also reminded people the new waste to resource policy kicks in on September 1.
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SITA reports robust growth
(Tuesday, 10 August 2010)

SITA Australia has been singled out as one of the shining lights globally for parent company Suez Environment. Revenue from local operations has been growing at around 10% per annum over the last five years, according to SITA’s GM of marketing and strategy, Simon Lee.
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Sydney clean out rounds up 16 bottles of DDT
(Tuesday, 10 August 2010)

The NSW Government’s CleanOut Collections Program achieved one of its major aims at a collection in the inner Sydney suburb of Zetland recently, when a householder dropped off 16 bottles of 1940s-manufactured DDT.
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Qld waste strategy unfair and unworkable: Veolia
(Tuesday, 3 August 2010)

Veolia has warned it may stop taking waste at its Queensland landfills under the proposed state waste strategy unless waste generators are required to provide “unavoidable proof” on the contents of each and every load. Veolia flagged a host of other impacts in its official response, from undermining industry at the expense of local government, undermining early adopters of best practice, and undermining skip bin companies.
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Waste reduction fund open for business
(Tuesday, 3 August 2010)

Consultation has opened on a new $14 million EPA Victoria fund targeted at waste minimisation in business and the building industry. It is the first investment tranche of the $54 million that will be raised by the revamped landfill levy over the next five years.
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NT UPDATE: The final frontier in waste
(Tuesday, 3 August 2010)

Most people think of the Northern Territory as the final frontier. This may be true in some regards – Darwin is a tropical cosmopolitan city closer to Indonesia than any other Australian capital. Being so far from the anywhere else in the country, it is no surprise we Territorians do things a little differently to break through the final frontier in waste management. By Shenagh Gamble.
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Awards galore for Geelong waste management
(Tuesday, 3 August 2010)

Victoria’s Barwon Regional Waste Management Group (BRWMG) took out the first ever Enviro 2010 SULO Innovation in Sustainability Award. Now it has turned benefactor, with the Sustainability Award it sponsors at the Geelong Business Excellence Awards going to Sweeney Todd Waste Disposal.
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Enviro 2010: Building design and waste
(Tuesday, 3 August 2010)

Commercial buildings in developed countries generate approximately 40% of waste going to landfill, according to the OECD. Commercial buildings are generally centres of a relatively high density of people are responsible for generating relatively large quantities of waste, meaning they have the potential to have a significant environmental impact. Considerations about waste need to start with building design, Encycle Consulting’s Dr Anne-Marie Bremner told Enviro 2010.
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It takes Village to recycle on-site
(Tuesday, 27 July 2010)

The ACT’s environment tsar recently toured the territory’s only plant recycling construction and demolition waste on-site. Commissioner Dr Maxine Cooper visited Village Building Company’s ‘Brindabella at Macgregor’ development, where the company is avoiding $2000 per house in landfill fees.
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