Recycling, News, Do's & Dont's

[Ded Driver]

kicking this topic off with an interesting article in todays ABC News, turning plastic back into oil.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-11...olution-to-plastic-recycling-problem/11679326
.
on a side note, where I live we have had a 3 bin collection for a few years now, Recyclables, Compostable Organic Waste, & General Waste.
The problem that arises, and I think very few people actually know or care about, is that our city has a contractor that is paid (by the city) to empty these bins, & they make a small amount out of the recyclables. The big problem is that under the contract if a truck load of recyclables is found to contain more than a certain amount of rubbish, it goes to the landfill/tip site & the council is back-charged an additonal fee for lost revenue, costing rate payers in the form of increases reflected in our rates over time.
This was explained in a news letter in our letter boxes from the council back when they first rolled out the 2 bin (recycle) system, but from local people I have spoken to, it seems very few are aware of that. It annoys the oop: out of me to drive past a house & see the recycle bin stacked over-full with general rubbish & crap sticking out the top.
So, get with the program peoples (everywhere), only put recyclables in the recycle bin!

 

[Ded Driver]

for interest, here's a link to what the recycle numbers on plastics represent
https://naturalsociety.com/recycling-symbols-numbers-plastic-bottles-meaning/

 

[Panny McGee]

We've just relocated to a new area and were told by the council that we can no longer include glass in our recycling??!! What the? I'm trying to find ways to re-use our jars and bottles but there's only so much you can do... :/

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know why recycling glass would be an issue?

 

[Smoky bandit]

I take everything to the local recyclers since they brought in the cash for containers.I get around $180 a month for my troubles and the yellow bin is only ever half full on pick up now :beer:

 

[Ded Driver]

We've just relocated to a new area and were told by the council that we can no longer include glass in our recycling??!! What the? I'm trying to find ways to re-use our jars and bottles but there's only so much you can do... :/

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know why recycling glass would be an issue?

yes, different glass containers have different 'alloys' (ie, the glass differs), & needs to be separated. This has to be done by hand & broken glass is a hazard.

 

[madtuna]

what? someone actually comes and collects you rubbish?

 

[Ded Driver]

what? someone actually comes and collects you rubbish?

MT, you should start a goat herd, & feed em your plastic, they love the stuff

 

[OrangeNugget]

ummm guys newsflash

nothing in australia actually gets recycled..
it just gets stored in warehouses...
until an overseas company takes it

problem is no one wants it anymore.

there is no real point to putting your stuff in the recycle bin..

 

[Ded Driver]

OrangeNugget, newsflash, we do have recycling plants here. Yes a lot was getting sent overseas (mainly China), but we do still process some here.
Im not going to dig them all up, but as an example, this recent one from this year;
https://www.sustainability.vic.gov....st-plastics-recycling-plant-opens-in-Victoria

 

[HippyProspecting]

Most recycling waste does get stockpiled but from what I have read online 145,700 tonnes a year of recycling is still reprocessed in australia

Edit. The figure I mentioned was from 2018. So after reading ded drivers post my figure has no doubt increased

 

[Goldfreak]

OrangeNugget, newsflash, we do have recycling plants here. Yes a lot was getting sent overseas (mainly China), but we do still process some here.
Im not going to dig them all up, but as an example, this recent one from this year;
https://www.sustainability.vic.gov....st-plastics-recycling-plant-opens-in-Victoria

We used to have a large plastic recycling company in Adelaide but it closed down because of the cost of electricity.

 

[Frankdonovan121]

I used to work at the local tip driving loaders/compactors/excavators/dump trucks, this place was recycling cardboard/metal before the new 3 bin system was used but the tip was planning to recycle more waste even then.

They also did the usual methane gas capturing system after capping.

 

[EVIE/BEE]

OrangeNugget, newsflash, we do have recycling plants here. Yes a lot was getting sent overseas (mainly China), but we do still process some here.
Im not going to dig them all up, but as an example, this recent one from this year;
https://www.sustainability.vic.gov....st-plastics-recycling-plant-opens-in-Victoria

We used to have a large plastic recycling company in Adelaide but it closed down because of the cost of electricity.

We could lower the price of electricity by sending it all to the coal fired power station to be burnt. :idea:

 

[OrangeNugget]

yeah what im saying is the amount of recycled product is negligible compared to the amount of actual rubbish...

its all just a bunch of crap.

 

[LONEWOLF]

A mate worked at Glen Innes Recycle.... Everything except Glass was Stock-piled.... No market for the Plastics and limited market for the Paper and Cardboard... So much for Re-cycling in the Country...

LW....

 

[Ded Driver]

there are (limited) processing industries for recycled plastics in Australia, but this is what needs more enthusiasm & support from people, investment by companies, & with government support, to turn this into a viable self-sustaining industry.
Whilst we have lost a lot of manufacturing in other commodities, this is one area that could generate new jobs, with downstream processing of recycled products into new products.
This thread was intended to be about the positives of recycling (mostly plastics), not apathy, complacency, & negativity.
Im sure everyone would like to see a cleaner future without so much plastic waste.

DED

 

[LONEWOLF]

We all do DD, but with the rising cost of Power, that alone makes these ventures very cost-consuming....

It was the Transport Cost that forced Glen Innes to stock pile...

LW...

 

[Ded Driver]

here's an interesting paper written by the CSIRO, on the Global Plastics Market, from an Australian perspective.
notable clauses, quoted
"1.1 Goal of study
The goal behind this work is to provide a comprehensive and authoritative analysis on the plastics recycling
industry to assist with the future identification of R&D opportunities to overcome market challenges and
support growth."
... and
1.5 Macroeconomic analysis: PESTLE framework
Political influences in Australia
Policies driving collection rather than recycling: Stakeholders noted that current policies favour the
collection of plastic waste, rather than addressing other levels in the supply chain to ensure this is
redirected into recycled products. Often results in waste stockpiles or offshore export.

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/doc/member-docs/12692/1574250852_csiro_19-00213_mf_report_plasticrecyclingwhitepaper.pdf

 

[user 4485]

OrangeNugget, newsflash, we do have recycling plants here. Yes a lot was getting sent overseas (mainly China), but we do still process some here.
Im not going to dig them all up, but as an example, this recent one from this year;
https://www.sustainability.vic.gov....st-plastics-recycling-plant-opens-in-Victoria

We used to have a large plastic recycling company in Adelaide but it closed down because of the cost of electricity.

We could lower the price of electricity by sending it all to the coal fired power station to be burnt. :idea:

:awful: ahhh nah that's not going to work. We use & other countries buy our good quality thermal black coal for a reason. Using low quality black/brown coal or other carbon mediums isn't efficient or viable at all.
IMO electricity is rising to cover the costs of green energy infrastructure not because of coal.

 

[EVIE/BEE]

This topic is about the do's and don'ts.
They're burning it in Perth...using waste ash to make bricks & pavers.
The greens are running around like chooks with their heads cut off.
Creates jobs, makes sense to me. read this.

https://www.thefifthestate.com.au/w...tralias-first-metropolitan-waste-incinerator/