Fires, floods, global pandemic – now more than ever, focus needs to be on sustainability and how we can help our environment.
A Plastics Recycling Results Roadmap is set to be produced following a roundtable meeting hosted by Assistant Waste Reduction Minister Trevor Evans and Australian Council of Recycling (ACOR) CEO Pete Shmigel.
What is the Plastics Recycling Results Roadmap?
The roadmap will seek to identify key practical and policy requirement for meeting the 70 per cent plastics recycling target, and develop an industry plan for consumer and corporate engagement and education on plastics recycling and recovery.
The roadmap will also explore market demand and policy options for reaching the target, including tax incentives, public procurement requirements, minimum recycled content quotas, infrastructure requirements, improved Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) monitoring, product specifications and definitions/implementation of the Council of Australian Government’s export ban.
The realities of plastics recycling
The Plastics Recycling Roundtable, which took place in late August, was attended by 27 representatives from 19 organisations involved in the plastic supply chain and lifecycle.
Future policy challenges and opportunities in plastics recycling, including the fragmented nature, current conditions and realities, as well as APCO’s plastics recycling targets.
Achieving the 70 per target requires policy innovation, such as providing direct incentives for the purchase of products with recycled content. We still use around 3.3 billion plastic bags, 2.6 billion coffee cups, 2.4 billion plastic straws and 1.3 billion plastic bottles each year. Numbers that have only gone up since COVID-19.
Wanless’s commitment to Plastic Waste Recycling
To help turn the tide on plastics littering Australia’s ocean and beaches, Wanless provides customers with a range of services to recycle soft, flexible plastics like pallet wrap, shrink wrap and other flexible and recyclable packaging (LDPE Low-density polyethylene). Plastic on collection is taken to a local recycling facility where it is sorted, cleaned, shredded and turned into granular pellets for further reuse in manufacturing creating new plastic products like builders wrap, packaging and even hard plastic products like furniture and wheelie bins.
For more information the Plastics Recycling Results Roadmap, go to Waste Management Review.