Australia: the National Waste Policy Action Plan – targets to 2030

Australia adopted on 8 November 2019 (an agreement of environment ministers in Adelaide) the National Waste Policy Action Plan – a national action plan that sets seven non-binding targets to 2030. The most important from the perspective of biogas and waste management: a ban on exports of unprocessed waste (plastic, paper, glass, tyres), an average resource recovery rate of 80% and halving the amount of organic waste going to landfill.

Background: the waste export crisis

The plan was drawn up in the context of changes in the recycling market. After China restricted waste imports, Australian local governments and companies lost the market for some recyclables. The plan was developed jointly by the federal government, the states and territories and the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA).

Targets concerning organic waste

For readers of Substraty.pl the most interesting is the biowaste target: halving organic waste sent to landfill by 2030. This translates directly into demand for composting plants and anaerobic digestion facilities, and indirectly into a reduction in methane emissions from landfills.

Other targets

According to the IEA database, the plan sets seven targets (most with a 2030 horizon; according to the text of the plan, the phase-out of problematic plastics by 2025 and the waste export ban from the second half of 2020):

• a ban on exports of plastic, paper and glass waste and tyres,
• a 10% reduction in waste generated per person,
• an average resource recovery rate of 80% from all waste streams,
• a significant increase in the use of recycled content by governments and industry,
• the phase-out of problematic and unnecessary plastics,
• halving the amount of organic waste going to landfill,
• making comprehensive, nationwide and up-to-date waste data available.

Limitations of the plan

The plan is not a legal act but an agreement between levels of government. Implementation depends on the states, which decide on landfill levies, mandatory biowaste collection and licences. Declaratory targets require concrete financial and regulatory tools.

What this means for Poland

The Australian plan illustrates a typical set-up: a target for organics recovery without “money” for installations is not enough. Poland, however, has a firmer framework in this area – the EU waste directive requires separate collection of biowaste (from the end of 2023, with derogations where it is not technically, environmentally and economically feasible), and this creates a basis for investment in waste-treatment biogas plants.