How to create wealth from waste and reduce our landfill

While Australia’s rich stocks of raw mineral resources have contributed to the nation’s wealth and given us a competitive advantage we are also one of the highest waste producing nations in the world (on a per capita basis).
In 2009-10 we dumped 21.6 million tonnes of household and industrial waste in 918 landfill sites around Australia. Of all the waste we produced we recycled only about half (52%).
But can we do things differently? Can we change our production and consumption patterns to generate wealth from what we currently designate as waste?

The potential exists

Consider e-waste, which is the old TVs, DVDs, computers, household appliances and other electrical goods that we throw away. This type of waste has emerged as one of our fastest growing waste streams but only about 10% is recovered or recycled.

Obsolete computers and accessories shouldn’t end up in landfill when they can be recycled for metals and materials. AAP Image/Alan Porritt

But e-waste devices also include valuable metals such as copper, silver, gold, palladium and other rare materials which means they are also ending up in landfill.
By 2008 we had already sent some 17 million televisions and 37 million computers to landfill, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
But if 75% of the 1.5 million televisions discarded annually could be recycled we could save 23,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, 520 mega litres of water, 400,000 gigajoules of energy and 160,000 cubic metres of landfill space.
Another way of looking at this is to compare gold yielded from an open pit mine with that from discarded electrical goods. Mining yields 1 to 5 grams of gold for every one tonne of ore. From the same quantity of discarded mobile phones and computer circuit boards, you can extract 350 grams and 250 grams respectively.

The new urban mines

In a world increasingly addressing issues of sustainability, it’s no wonder that such end-of-life products are now being seen as urban mines – valuable sources of above-ground metals which can be recycled and reused.
That is the concept of the “circular economy”.
There is already some extensive recycling activity in Australia, helped by schemes such as the national Product Stewardship framework which encourages people to reduce waste.
But we still lose significant amounts of valuable and recyclable materials into landfill and park valuable metals in tailings and spoil heaps.
Given Australia is already a global leader in primary resource production from the ground, it is timely to think about how we might also adapt and grow our expertise to mine and process above ground stocks and remain at the cutting edge.

Can we lead the urban mining revolution?

Globally, there is already growing capacity and innovation in recycling.

Some recycling of rubbish is being done, such as at the Visy recycling plant in Brisbane, but we can do more. AAP Image/Dan Peled

New forms of manufacturing and business models are being developed that integrate secondary manufacturing of recycled materials.
So the potential is there to diversify and adapt Australia’s skills and technologies to support the new forms of processing and manufacturing in this circular economy.

Why don’t we do this?

A major challenge lies in the ability to persuade people and industry to see waste products as a resource rather than a liability. We need to create more responsive manufacturing, processing innovation and new business models around recycling.
This will challenge the way we currently operate as a nation and ask us to rethink how we relate to consumer markets around the world.
We can’t keep relying solely on our raw mineral resources. Some commentators are now discussing materials scarcity as a bigger issue than energy scarcity.
This scarcity is driving a move towards a circular economy – one in which the value created by inputs (materials, energy and labour) is extended by enabling a material life that goes beyond product life. So we go from mineral to metal, to product, back to metal and so on.
By understanding such economies and value of how this chain operates in Australia, we can begin to understand, at scale, the barriers and opportunities to more sustainable consumption and production in a resource limited future.

Looking for a new solution

That’s why CSIRO and its university partners led by University of Technology Sydney are today launching the Wealth from Waste Research Collaboration Cluster to do just this.

Too much rubbish - Australia leads the way in waste per capita. Waste Atlas

Although the technological challenges of complex materials processing are fascinating, it is innovative business models that hold the key to unlocking the wealth in our waste.
We also need to understand more about the cultural norms to see what needs changing.
Clean Up Australia found that around 14 million phones sit unused in drawers or cupboards, that’s equivalent to almost one unused phone for every two people in the country.
Although 90% of the materials within a mobile phone can be re-used, globally less than 10% of mobile phones are actually recycled. So why when we already have a solution do we not act to recycle our waste?
The research programme will be about finding new ways of doing things that accommodate our relatively small domestic materials market and challengs the mindset that size matters when it comes to complex materials processing.
If we wish to add urban mining to our global mining reputation then we need to couple research, industry and policy transitions for success in a future where recycling is an integral component of resource productivity, not a niche specialism.

The Conservation Society's statement of support

Southern Beaches Conservation Society Inc. is a non-political group that has no affiliation with any political party.

The following is an itemised statement from Southern Beaches Conservation Society Inc. (SBCS), to all our Facebook friends, defining the support SBCS has received over the past 18 months from each of the political parties, individual MPs and candidates in this coming state election, regarding our issues with the Copping hazardous/controlled waste C cell or toxic dump.

• From one of our early community meetings, Federal, Independent MP Andrew Wilkie, pledged support and raised questions of inadequate community consultation with regard to granting of the C cell permit with appropriate Ministers and with the Prime Minister. Andrew has continued his support from that time.

• From our very earliest meetings, Tony Mulder, Member Legislative Council, asked questions in the Legislative Council regarding the C cell and lack of community consultation. Also has assisted SBCS on numerous occasions with advice and with postage.

• Following one of our first community meetings, Tim Morris arranged a meeting with SBCS to determine our issues regarding the Copping C cell.

• Tim Morris raised questions on several occasions, in state Parliament, on lack of community consultation prior to granting of the C cell permit. 

• Rebecca White, Labor MP for Lyons has assisted SBCS with printing on many occasions. But has not met with us as a group.

• Tim Morris, has called for the release of a report on state legacy, hazardous waste, through Parliamentary privilege, on numerous occasions. Succeeding, through the Ombudsman in gaining a letter from Southern Waste Solutions (SWS), stating the amount of waste and number of entities throughout the state. This letter enable SBCS to define the quantity of waste around the state with which to build a case for non-warranty of a C cell in Tasmania. 

• Tim Morris has been available for many meetings with SBCS regarding alternative solutions to hazardous waste management, resulting in a meeting with him and the – then - Minister Cassy O’Connor MP, to gain the interest of the Greens party. 

• Tim Morris took SBCS information to the Greens Party Room for agreement to call for a Moratorium on the C cell until there is a state based waste management strategy in place that looks at alternative solutions for hazardous waste. This has been accepted by the Greens.

• At the recent SBCS, The Waste of Tasmania pub debate Tim Morris announced the Greens Moratorium on hazardous waste to landfill.

• State election candidates on the Panel for the Waste of Tasmania pub debate included: Tim Morris, Greens, Lyons; Mark Grube, Palmer United Party, Denison; and Michael Swanton, Independent, Denison. 

• Mark Grube  supported a claim of lack of due diligence on behalf of Southern Waste Solutions (SWS) with regard to community consultation.  

• Michael Swanton supported our stand on landfill as a last resort.

• Over the last 18 months many requests made by SBCS for meeting with Labor Ministers have fallen on deaf ears. 

• At a meeting with Minster David O’Byrne it was evident that he was determined that the correct decision had been made regarding the C cell and landfill was the best and only method for waste disposal in Tasmania.

• Nether Labor or the Liberals will acknowledge that we have any just cause to question the C cell permit. We have letters to that effect from both part leaders. 

• Both Labor and Liberal refused their candidates permission to take part in the pub debate.

• Neither Labor or Liberal are interested in seeking alternative solutions to landfill and would rather assist industry to take the cheapest way out, leaving no incentives for alternative solutions that would lead to job creation and energy efficiency. 

Statement ends.

Angela Marsh, President, SBCS

13 March 2014