Moving from recycling to circularity
As Victoria looks to shift to a circular economy where we eliminate landfill, Sustainability Victoria (SV) was on the ground at Australia's largest gathering of waste and recycling professionals in Melbourne last week, leading the conversation with the industries that will shape this future for Victoria.
Waste Expo is a chance to hear about the latest and greatest in how Victoria is managing its waste and recycling, and the new ideas being explored for a future where we see waste differently.
It’s a conversation we need to be part of. At this critical time when the waste management industry must turn its focus to circularity, we’re working with the sector to ensure Victoria is investing in the technology we need to stimulate innovation, and to increase our capacity to recycle more locally.
Switching to circular
Recycling is not enough for us to tackle waste. We need to move away from creating waste to avoiding it altogether. For the waste we can't avoid, we need to make sure we can recycle it so it retains as much of its value as possible.
In his keynote address at Waste Expo, SV’s interim CEO Matt Genever highlighted the importance of supporting a system-wide shift to circularity and a more sustainable way of using and recycling our resources.
Over the past 3 years, SV has been focused on helping industry get the right infrastructure on the ground to increase local capacity and capability for recycling.
Matt noted that SV has awarded more than 300 grants worth over $81 million to improve the waste and recycling sector, resulting in almost 2 million tonnes of new recycling capacity and 800 new jobs by 2025.
New e-waste recycling technology at Scipher Technologies and a new drum pulper for paper and cardboard recycling at Visy are just two of these game-changing projects.
In his speech, Matt explained that circular economy depends on a robust market for recycled materials, so SV is also supporting more than 80 projects with $15.8 million to develop new products and technology to recover, produce and circulate recycled materials back into the economy, improving product supply and quality.
Thanks to one of these grants, a research team at Deakin University has designed a process to recycle low-value textile waste into pigments to colour new textiles and artwork.
In addition to funding, programs like SV’s Buy Recycled Service are encouraging local councils to use recycled materials and products in their infrastructure, landscaping, parks and gardens, connecting them with suppliers and other councils that are leading the way.
Designing out waste
According to the European Commission, up to 80% of a product’s environmental impact is determined in the design phase.
Design decides how easily a product can be repaired, reused and repurposed, making it a key pillar in circularity.
SV’s circular economy expert and industrial design engineer Florian van den Corput took part in a Waste Expo panel discussion with representatives from the Australian Repair Network, Repurpose It, Charitable Recycling Australia and Close the Loop to explore the role of design in achieving circularity.
To support a circular economy, consumers are encouraged to repair and reuse before buying new, or even recycling which is labour- and emissions-intensive. But products must first be designed with these outcomes in mind.
As noted in the panel discussion, the tide is beginning to turn. Telecommunications multinational Nokia this year launched a repairable phone, and tech giant Apple has just announced its support for a US right-to-repair bill after initial opposition.
Victoria is lucky enough to be home to around a third of Australia’s repair cafés, many of which have received funding from SV.
This means Victorians are best placed to contribute to our circular economy while saving both money and resources by fixing and reusing their damaged items rather than throwing them away and buying a new replacement.
Big on bioenergy
Another essential part of our transition to a circular economy is harnessing the power of bioenergy, which is electricity, heat, gas or liquid fuel generated from organic waste.
At Waste Expo, SV’s bioenergy expert Matt Nelson led a panel discussion on the evolving market opportunities and pathways for bioenergy projects to succeed in Victoria.
With organic waste representing more than 30% of the total solid waste sent to landfill in Victoria, the opportunities to increase the role of bioenergy in our circular economy is huge.
For example, bioenergy currently accounts for 3% of Australia’s total energy consumption, but could provide up to 20% within the next 30 years.
To help accelerate this transition, SV has invested $8 million in 24 bioenergy projects, contributing to the Recycling Victoria policy goal of halving the amount of organic material going to landfill by 2030 and assisting Victoria in meeting its zero net carbon target by 2050.
Building green skills for a circular future
In addition to delivering major projects with the waste and resource recovery sector, SV is looking at new opportunities to upskill and support both industry and government with the educational opportunities it needs as we transition to a circular economy.
Register your interest in professional training on circular economy or social licence to operate to stay updated.
In her interactive workshop at Waste Expo, SV’s Sandra Mack gave participants a taste of these opportunities, sharing principles of building a social licence to operate, and how these can be applied in their engagement with local communities and other stakeholders.