NSW Department of Environment runs one of nation’s most cost ineffective waste collection scheme - 6 January 2009

According to calculations of Greens MP Ian Cohen, the NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change is running one of the nation’s most expensive waste collection programs. Based upon figures provided by the Department, the cost of waste collection for the 'Household Chemical CleanOut' program is $2451 per tonne.

“There is no doubt this waste needs to be recovered. The point is that if we don’t develop environmentally and economically sustainable waste management measures and infrastructure, such as Extended Producer Responsibility Schemes to manage new chemical products, we will continue to rely upon this expensive display of government waste management ad hocery,” says Greens MP Ian Cohen.

The Household Chemical CleanOut program, which collects household chemical waste in the Illawarra, Hunter and Greater Sydney region, has been operating since March 2003 at an annual cost of $1.6 million dollars – a total of $8 million over 5 years. According to figures provided by the Department, the program has collected 3262.9 tonnes of chemical waste including paint products, solvents and household cleaners, batteries, gas bottles, fluorescent tubes, and pesticides and poisons.

“The NSW Government’s failure to develop EPR schemes such for beverage containers, Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs (CFL) and Gas Bottles weds us to the continued plundering of NSW taxpayer dollars on a waste collection scheme reeking with inefficiency,”

“Without EPR, paint tins, CFLs, e-waste, Used Lead Acid Batteries and the like will remain buried away in the backshed, only to be partially collected through expensive piecemeal departmental schemes.”

“Spending over $8 million dollars to collect 3262 tonnes of chemical waste is farcical –requiring all NSW taxpayers, not just the product consumers or producers, to foot the $2451 per tonne bill. Voluntary EPR Schemes and other waste collection projects would struggle to exceed $30 per tonne.

“The ‘Household Chemical Cleanout’ program is an implicit acknowledgement that there are not appropriate recovery avenues for household/consumer chemical waste. If Government acknowledges this waste management problem they need to develop EPR Schemes, not throw fistfuls of dollars at a stop gap measure.”