Is the Hunters Recycling Industry Heading for the Tip?

BY TYLER FARDELL


On January 1st, The Chinese government stopped the import of recyclable materials and it left recycling businesses and kerbside pick-ups all across Australia struggling to maintain the current levels of recycling.

Already in Victoria some local councils have had to cut off some local recycling contracts and residents in some communities are being told to not use their yellow bins.

And here in the Hunter the first effects of the import ban are starting to show with recycling company Polytrade reducing the operation of their plant in Gateshead to a week by week basis.

Many residents are starting to get concerned they may be hit with an increased rate for the kerbside recycling bin pickup but Councillors are hopeful it may not come to that.

According to Lake Macquarie City Councils Director of City Strategy Tony Farrell, the Hunter is well-equipped to manage the situation for the short term.

"The Hunter has great recyclable waste facilities and the normal service of bin pick-up will continue as normal," he said.

"People should not be worried about an increase of rates at this time".

For the time being it seems everything will continue as normal, but council expects they will start to store glass recyclables very soon.

Mr Farrell is confident a long term solution will be found before the situation gets any worse.

"The worst outcome would be seeing recyclable materials end up in landfill and we're working hard to ensure it doesn't come to this".

Recycling plant in Gateshead
Source; GAP group

Stockton Rubbish Rises to the Surface

BY TYLER FARDELL

The huge swell and strong winds which battered Newcastle's coastline over the past weeks has uncovered a dirty secret in Stockton.

Over the weekend, much of the Stockton sand dunes close to the water were eroded away, revealing a disgusting sight for many locals who visit the area.

Currently, signs are in place to deter away any visitors as representatives from Newcastle City Council, Hunter Water and the Environment Protection Authority met today at the site to discuss the clean-up.

Many community members are worried the situation could get worse if the rubbish isn't cleaned up before another big swell hits and erodes more of the sandbank away, which has already collapsed in some places.

Keiran Smith from Hunter Water says they're looking to fix the situation as quick as they can.

"Today we're meeting with Council and the EPA to get this mess sorted out", he said. "We need to hire a licensed contractor to fix the site.

The site of the rubbish is on the land of Hunter Water so they'll be taking the lead of the cleanup.

"Our immediate focus is to make the site safe so that includes signage and security", Mr Smith said.

Rubbish along Stockton Beach
Photo source; NBN News

Fire at former Newcastle Post Office

BY JESSICA ROUSE

A rubbish fire has caused damage to the former Newcastle Post Office building overnight.

Fire crews were called to the building just before 10pm to find the fire on the 1st floor.

It was contained and under control within an hour but police are investigating with suggestions it could have been deliberately lit.

Thankfully the building didn't suffer any major structural damage.

Newcastle Post Office this morning Image Liz Farquhar Twitter

Cessnock residents asked to clean up their act

BY JARROD MELMETH

A notorious illegal dumping ground on McLeod Road in Loxford has been cleaned up and Cessnock City Council is hoping it stays that way.

Cleaning up the 22.4 hectare site was no easy task and Council worked closely with the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA), Crown Lands and local company Goninan & Sons to get the job done.

The project involved removing 78.6 tonnes of waste, installing fencing around the site and putting in three gates for access to services.

The waste removed from the site included 7.92 tonnes of asbestos, 28 tyres, 12 needles, whitegoods and general household rubbish.

Cessnock City Mayor, Councillor Bob Pynsent said he was disgusted the site got to this point and is calling on the community to clean up their act.

“One of the concerning things in this clean-up was the amount of children’s toys and items such as prams and car seats, indicating families are some of the key offenders.

“If kids are in tow when parents are dumping rubbish in bushland, it sends a message that this is OK, which is highly concerning,”Cr Pynsent said.

In an effort to educate the community and prevent further illegal dumping, Council also distributed a brochure to all residents in Loxford, Kurri Kurri, Clifleigh, Standford Methyr and Weston.
This project was funded by the NSW EPA through the Waste Less Recycle More initiative, funded by the waste levy. 

The dumping site at Loxford. 

What the cup?

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The Hunter is just one contributor to Australia's growing waste problem and with waste growing at double the rate of our population with 52 mega tonnes a year, something needs to be done.

Disposable coffee cups are at the top of the list of contributors to the problem with 98 per cent of paper coffee cups not recyclable due to a coating of polyethylene plastic and therefore often end up in landfill.

A huge 1.2 of the 3 million coffees sold daily in cafes throughout Australia are being poured into these disposable cups, which is equal to half a billion disposable cups in landfill every year, and that's just in Australia alone.

But, a former University of Newcastle student is trying to combat the problem - he's created a reusable SmartCup which coffee lovers can use again and again instead of using a paper coffee cup.

The frank green SmartCup and SmartBottle are combatting the growing waste problem one cup of coffee at a time, and creator Ben Young says what makes his 100 per cent reusable cups so great is actually what makes them so different.

"It's a very different product offering to our competitors particularly around style, the fact they don't leak, they're made of premium materials and one thing we're very unique about is we do everything here in Australia 100 per cent."

A three-part abcTV series War on Waste airing recently highlighted just how big the waste problem is in Australia giving more traction to the frank green company but they've already been operating for a couple of years both here in Australia and overseas.

Ben says being able to reuse a product is much more beneficial than simply recycling a product.

"People are worried about biodegradable cups, but to me, they're missing the point. The point is it takes a whole heap of energy and resources and plastic and paper to make any cup - that's one really important point that gets lost in this whole war on waste thing. It's not about whether they're recyclable or not, it's about not having them in the first instance."

New era of waste management in Cessnock

BY JESSICA ROUSE

It's a new era for waste management in Cessnock with an upgrade to the local waste facility with a new Waste Transfer System under construction.

The facility's construction began in January, and will allow residents to drop off items such as metals, garden organics, electronic waste, paints, oils and batteries with ease, to be recovered and recycled.

Waste Transfer System plan Image www.cessnock.nsw.gov.au

"This is big dollar business, third party licensed and monitored, and the greatest long term savings we can make is about the recapture of those resources that have a value and can be recycled and reprocessed to avoid landfill," said Manager of Environment and Waste Michael Alexander.

More often than not items which can be re purposed or recycled end up in landfill, instead of going to making a new product.

Michael Alexander says we need to get rid of the tip mentality and work towards a cleaner environment because "once it [rubbish] hits landfill, it's lost forever. It's certainly not the best environmental outcome, and this is just another step in that direction which compliments the services we already have".

Cessnock Mayor Bob Pynsent believes the redesign will be of huge benefit to the community once it's finished.

"The redesign not only offers the community more resource recovery opportunities but also will deliver a facility which has increased safety, and convenience."