South Australia will be one of the first states to voluntarily phase out 15-cent reusable plastic shopping bags across Woolworths stores and online orders, following the retailer’s commitment to phase out the bags nationwide – a first for a major national supermarket. The change will also simultaneously take place in the Northern Territory.
The recent exposure of a Canterbury-Bankstown Council garbage truck dumping both the red and yellow lid bin in the same truck provides a salient reminder about community trust (SMH, 28 July).
The second round of WasteSorted Schools grant funding for 2022 is now open for applications.
Woolworths Group and Pact are working to establish a new partnership to boost circular packaging, which could see up to 18,000 tonnes of recycled plastic used in Woolworths’ own brand packaging each year.
Construction has started on a $16 million project that will turn waste flowing to Australia’s largest wastewater treatment plant into carbon-neutral gas for use in Sydney homes and businesses.
Did you miss out on getting a nomination in for the Women in Industry Awards? Nominations have been extended and will now close on Friday 22 July 2022!
The record set for compliance under the Vinyl Council of Australia’s (VCA) PVC Stewardship Program (PSP) has again been broken in the 2021 reporting year, furthering the ongoing streak of sustainable development seen under the program since its inception in 2002. In the latest assessment of 2021 calendar year performance, 26 signatories demonstrated full compliance with all relevant commitments aimed at furthering the safety and sustainability of the PVC industry in Australia.
An agreement between Australia and the United States will see greater international research collaboration in areas related to plastic waste and renewable energy. The CSIRO has signed a MoU with the US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
The SA Environment Protection Authority is moving to record an interest in certificates of title in EPA assessment areas where it holds an environmental assessment report, further strengthening transparency and information available to the community around legacy contamination.
The overarching themes across the election campaigns are how Australia can manage its increasing cost of living and the need to continue building a resilient economy while we come out of four difficult years. With the number of natural disasters and changing weather patterns, climate change has become a mainstream issue, with major parties turning some of their attention to addressing and managing emissions. The waste and resource recovery (WARR) sector is primed to meet these challenges both economically and environmentally. WMRR has written and spoken to parties and ministers about how we can get cut through to make Australia’s green deal vision a reality. Read more