Gayle Sloan

waste levies
 Circular Economy, Councils, Legislation, Opinion, WMRR

Waste levies: The economic lever Australia cannot ignore

Australia’s waste challenge is not a mystery. We are simply generating too much waste — and expecting the waste and resource recovery sector to solve a problem it did not create. Recent commentary reinforces what our industry has said for years: if Australia is serious about transitioning to a circular economy, responsibility cannot sit solely at the end of the product lifecycle. It must sit with those who design, manufacture, market and profit from products in the first place. That is why waste levies matter. Read More
Productivity Commission
 Circular Economy, Opinion, Packaging, Packaging Design, Packaging targets, Recycling

Productivity Commission misses opportunity

In January 2026, the Productivity Commission released Australia’s Circular Economy: Unlocking the Opportunities — an inquiry tasked with identifying ways to improve Australia’s materials productivity and support the transition to a circular economy. While it contains practical observations about barriers and opportunities, it falls short of identifying what is required to shift Australia from a linear, to a circular economic model. A circular economy moves beyond the traditional “take-make-dispose” model. Internationally, circular economy policy is recognised not as waste reform, but as economic and climate reform. The reason for this is clear: material extraction and processing are major drivers of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Read More
resource recovery
 Opinion

Australia’s resource recovery crossroads: progress, paralysis, and the power of regulation

This year has shaped up to be one of the busiest years yet on the waste and resource recovery calendar – arguably the most pivotal since China’s National Sword policy jolted Australia into reality back in 2018. Ironically, much of the busyness stems not from unbridled progress, but from the constant need to stop ourselves sliding backwards. Read More
decarbonisation
 Opinion

Supercharging decarbonisation

With all the talk about the pending updated 2035 emissions reduction targets, I can’t help but wonder if one way of getting our national policy mojo back is greater emphasis on the link that waste and resource recovery (WARR) has to carbon. The reality is that Australia’s 43 per cent emissions-reduction target by 2030 and net zero by 2050 are achievable if we mobilise every lever, including the WARR industry. Continuing to reduce “waste” to an end-of-pipe problem squanders enormous potential for abatement. Read More
Regulation
 Circular Economy, Federal Government, Latest News, Legislation, WMRR

What it really takes to create a circular economy

In Australia, the circular economy has become something of a buzzword – a vision celebrated in strategy papers, stakeholder workshops, and target-setting forums. Yet for all the consultation, communiqués and roundtable photo opportunities, Australia still lacks the one thing that would truly enable a safe and functioning circular economy: regulation. Read More
Resource Recovery
 Opinion

WMRR: Finally some good news, but plenty to do

After what seems like months of false starts and a general lack of action to move towards our often-cited Net Zero and Resource Recovery targets, it was pleasing to end 2024 with a little bit of good news; the increase in the national recovery rate of 3 per cent (about 2 million tonnes) in the latest National Waste and Resource Recovery Report. Read More
Net Zero
 Opinion

Finally some good news – but plenty to do

After what seems like months of false starts and a general lack of action to move towards our often-cited Net Zero and Resource Recovery targets, it was pleasing to end 2024 with a little bit of good news; the increase in the national recovery rate of 3 per cent (about 2 million tonnes) in the latest National Waste and Resource Recovery Report. Read More