27 JULY 2011insidewaste.com.au
Potential of recycling not recognised: Ritchie
Edited by : AL CIRCLE
2 min read
Inside Waste Weekly reported last week that the government’s announcement of a carbon price plan might well lead to a rise in recycling rates for high embodied energy materials such as aluminium and plastics, but could also bring challenges such as increased operating costs. While the industry awaits further details from the government, industry consultant Mike Ritchie said the carbon plan is the right reform but that waste and recycling remain the “poor cousins”.
“People are not looking at the potential for recovering embodied energy from waste and it’s a real problem and a lost opportunity,” said Ritchie, “it could reduce Australia’s emissions by 7-8%”.
He said regulators need to understand what recycling has to offer in terms of scale and establish national accounting which can measure the carbon savings from recycling activities. It is hoped that some of the government’s $10 billion in funding for renewable energy technologies will go towards projects that convert waste to energy.
“Having said that, there is plenty the government could be doing right now to encourage more recycling…if there was a concerted effort by governments over the next five years that would have an enormous implication for carbon emissions,” said Ritchie, suggesting that a target of 70% would be achievable for diversion of waste from landfill.
“People are not looking at the potential for recovering embodied energy from waste and it’s a real problem and a lost opportunity,” said Ritchie, “it could reduce Australia’s emissions by 7-8%”.
He said regulators need to understand what recycling has to offer in terms of scale and establish national accounting which can measure the carbon savings from recycling activities. It is hoped that some of the government’s $10 billion in funding for renewable energy technologies will go towards projects that convert waste to energy.
“Having said that, there is plenty the government could be doing right now to encourage more recycling…if there was a concerted effort by governments over the next five years that would have an enormous implication for carbon emissions,” said Ritchie, suggesting that a target of 70% would be achievable for diversion of waste from landfill.
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