Queensland gets its waste strategy
The Queensland Government has ignored concerns about its proposed waste levy and will go ahead with a scheme that exempts domestic waste from any additional landfill charge and will see business costs edge up. An across the board levy came out on top in an independent cost-benefit analysis, but the government said the difference was marginal.
On December 23 the state government released the final Waste Reduction and Recycling Strategy 2010–2020.
It looks little different to the draft released in June last year, including the 2020 targets to halve landfill volumes, more than double the recycling rate of municipal solid waste to 65% and of building waste to 75%, increase recycling of commercial and industrial waste from 18% in 2008 to 60%, and reduce waste generation from 2.4 tonnes per person per year to two tonnes.
The strategy also sticks to the split levy - $35 a tonne on general business waste, $0 on MSW - despite waste industry concerns about its operation, principally how to differentiate waste streams at the landfill when trucks may be carrying mixed loads.
“The main reason for excluding domestic kerbside-collected waste from the levy is that, under current local government charging systems, households have no capacity to reduce their liability under the levy as they pay a flat rate on their rates,” said the strategy.
It would seem to ignore the impact of a potential levy when councils come around to reviewing their waste and recycling contracts, as it could influence the balance of those services.
The waste levy is expected to raise about $380 million over four years. Some $159 million will go to business to reduce the amount of waste it generates and to the waste industry to encourage investment in recycling technologies. A further $120 million will support councils spending on environmental projects, focusing on better waste management facilities and practices.
ACOR (Australian Council of Recycling) chief executive, Rod Welford, said while the strategy sets much needed recycling targets, it would have preferred greater incentives for councils to minimise waste generation by including municipal waste under the levy system.
He said local governments should welcome the strategy as it provides them with access to $120 million funded by industry while exempting them from paying any levy on municipal waste which they fail to recycle.
“On the whole however, ACOR welcomes the fact that the Strategy sets targets and now provides some potential for industry to invest in infrastructure to meet them.
“The test will be whether the levy system and funding allocations are well enough targeted to ensure recycling is adequately incentivised so that the recycling targets are achieved,” he said.
The Ai Group queried the rationale behind the levy allocation and highlighted industry’s concern that the proposed Waste Avoidance and Resource Efficiency (WARE) funding for business would be inadequate to deliver meaningful initiatives.
Sustainability Minister Kate Jones said "we'll continue to work with peak bodies such as the Australian Industry Group and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland to identify opportunities for all businesses, particularly small to medium sized enterprises, to boost their recycling efforts and reduce their disposal costs”.
A business plan, to be released in February 2011, will provide the program detail for achieving the waste strategy's goals and targets, including introduction of the levy in July.
Source: http://www.insidewaste.com.au/StoryView.asp?StoryID=2380874
