In a united call for better management of packaging waste and recycling in Australia, key industry and green groups have released a joint statement supporting a mandatory product stewardship scheme for packaging by 2026.
Since China Sword back in 2018, and following the collapse of REDCycle in 2022, there have been independent reviews, repeated calls to action, and government commitments to reform the packaging waste system. But action has been glacially slow, and the latest round of reform in the works by the Commonwealth seems to have stalled.
The next stage in the government decision process is to resolve key operating principles following on from the Commonwealth consultation report last year.
To encourage state and federal governments to “get on with the job”, cross-sector industry organisations and green groups have come together in joint support, as their statement says, of “introducing a mandatory stewardship scheme for packaging by 2026 that applies targets and producer responsibility across the life cycle, including for soft plastics”.
The groups represent the major stakeholders involved in addressing this critical issue – Boomerang Alliance, Waste Management and Resource Recovery Australia Association (WMRR), Australian Council of Recyclers (ACOR), Soft Plastics Stewardship Australia (SPSA), and Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO).
Jeff Angel, CEO of Boomerang Alliance (a group of 55 environmental NGOs) told PKN, “This is the most significant development since the collapse of REDCycle and lays the basis for future constructive discussions and getting a real circular economy solution to our packaging waste dilemma.”
Asked what next steps will follow this announcement, Angel said it will involve setting targets, establishing a levy on packaging that will fund collection and recycling, and implementing redesign of packaging so it uses less wasteful material and is easier to recycle and reuse.
“Consensus at this level is something that governments will ignore at their peril,” Angel warns. “There is enormous public concern about packaging design and waste, including soft plastics, and growing worry about plastic pollution.”
Gayle Sloan, CEO of WMRR, agrees that public concern over the plastic and packaging waste crisis runs high and adds that this is an area there is broad consensus on across political parties and industry organisations – there is no reason not to forge ahead quickly to achieve a national solution.
She describes the pace of reform to date as “bitterly disappointing”.
“We recognise that the packaging value chain is a complex system but we are not going to get the investment needed until we make those parties putting the packaging into the market and the environment responsible for the materials they use and for funding the system to manage their entire lifecyle,” Sloan told PKN.
Suzanne Toumbourou, CEO of ACOR, agrees, telling PKN, “What we really need is clarity and policy certainty about where we are headed. The federal government has not made the time frame clear on national reform, and meanwhile states are progressing with their own policies.”
She emphasised that “a nationally harmonised approach” will be the foundation to drive investment for collection and recycling infrastructure for a circular economy for packaging.
Chris Foley, CEO of APCO weighed in too, saying: “Industry is united on the need for action and APCO’s 2030 strategic plan guides this. We will be consulting our members and stakeholders across April and May on the activation of the plan and in particular the raising of funds to support the collection and recycling of packaging including soft plastics.”
PKN looks forward to updating readers on progress in the hope that this joint statement spurs action by policymakers.
