Ms THEOPHANOUS (Northcote): It is with great pleasure that I rise to speak in support of the Circular Economy (Waste Reduction and Recycling) Bill 2021. Over the weekend the world turned its collective attention to the existential threat of climate change as COP26 came to an end. To any onlooker it is clear that most of the international community acknowledge and understand the realities of climate change and the threat that global warming poses to governments, businesses and communities. And while there was some progress at Glasgow, like so many in my community, I was disappointed that we did not see more done to stop warming before it hits 1.5 degrees Celsius, and I was particularly disappointed, though not surprised, by the federal coalition’s weakness and sidestepping when it comes to emissions reductions targets or any tangible plan for a more sustainable future. While 140 countries strengthened their 2030 targets as part of the COP26 process, Australia was not one of them. The Morrison government is sticking with its dismal 2030 target of reducing emissions by a mere 26 to 28 per cent, one of the weakest in the developed world. If that was not bad enough, only hours after the official communiqué came through calling on countries to phase down coal and increase formal emissions reductions targets next year, we saw the energy minister say that the Morrison government would do neither of these things.
For my community this kind of reckless inaction is terrifying. But I want to inject some hope, particularly for young people in my community, and this circular economy bill is emblematic of that hope. It might be difficult to discern against the backdrop of Australia’s callous evading of its responsibilities, but Victoria is undergoing one of the most rapid transformations of its economy in its history. Our climate change strategy released this year paves a path to zero emissions with interim targets that will mean we will hit between 45 and 50 per cent emissions reductions by 2030. It is not going to be easy—the practical and political challenges are immense—but it is exciting stuff. It means investing in large-scale renewables and new energy technology, moving more homes and transport onto electricity, big changes in industry and agriculture and restoring habitat to store carbon in our landscape. It also means overhauling our recycling sector and moving it to a circular economy.
For decades, or indeed centuries, our societies and economies have been built around the use of fossil fuels and around the linear use of resources. Take, use, dispose—that has largely been the history of production and consumption across the globe and for generations. It is the story of capitalism and consumerism, but it has served us ill, and fundamental change is required. This change is complex and transformative. It is shifting the very basis of how our economy works and how business operates, down to how we live, work and socialise in our daily lives. But this government has shown that it will not put things into the too-hard basket. We will not shy away from doing the hard work to get this right. Those opposite have noted some of the practical challenges in implementing this kind of reform—but they are not insurmountable challenges, and when you come to accept that and embrace the task of meeting those challenges, as the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change has done in this bill, then you see real progress and immense opportunity.
In February 2020 we released Recycling Victoria: A New Economy, which is our 10-year plan to address the urgent challenges in the recycling sector and deliver a circular economy for Victoria. This is all about reducing waste and generating more value from our resources and materials, and there are so many exciting ways to do this. We can do this by improving manufacturing processes; we can do it through design, through how we use and re-use and recycle and repurpose and repair products and materials; and we can do it by creating new opportunities for business and new sustainable jobs.
We are already making important strides in reducing our use of materials through important announcements like our commitment to phase out single-use plastics like straws and cutlery by 2023. I was thrilled to join the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change in my electorate of Northcote for this announcement, where our local cafe Mamma Says told us about their journey towards phasing out plastics. In nearby Alphington, also in my electorate, local social enterprise Reground is collecting coffee grounds, chaff and soft plastics from businesses and giving them new life. Up in Thornbury, Span Community House has been running a very popular community composting project. We also have local volunteers in places like the Darebin Repair Cafe and our local men’s shed fixing up bikes and other items. In my community we are already embracing this work and this ethos, and we are excited to see what more we can achieve in this space through our circular economy strategy. I can say there is certainly no shortage of ideas, from tackling the problem of single-use coffee cups to ending over-packaging in supermarkets to repurposing textiles and solar panels.
But a big part of any new circular economy needs to be our kerbside recycling, and this we know has been fraught. Along with many in my community, I was horrified to hear about the illegal stockpiling and the warehouse fires and later mortified to learn that much of our recycling was being diverted to landfill because no backup structures were available. Inconsistent across local government areas, exposed to changes in international markets and not meeting its potential, our kerbside recycling system must be able to work better for Victorians.
Up until now there has not been one central body responsible for leading this work. This bill changes that by creating Recycling Victoria, a new body to oversee and lead the transformation of our waste and recycling sector. Recycling Victoria will have the power to enforce service standards and quality in kerbside recycling and will drive vital reforms to kerbside waste collection. At the heart of these reforms is our new four-bin system. This will mean that every Victorian will have access to four separate waste streams: food and organics, commingled recycling, residual waste and glass. The rollout of this system will be gradual, with councils required to provide the new glass service, or purple bin, by 2027 and food and organics by 2030. For most households this will mean four different bins for kerbside pick-up, but we know this will not work for everyone. That is why there is flexibility built into the system to allow for exceptions and variations in the rollout.
These changes will substantially improve the quality of recyclable materials being collected from our homes, meaning less contamination, less waste and less waste heading into landfill. Food and organics waste services alone will divert up to 650 000 tonnes of organic waste from landfill each year and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In terms of glass, the Parliamentary Budget Office released some interesting stats last year. It found the recycling process damages or contaminates around one-third of the glass in our mixed bins to the point that it is unsuitable for recycling, ultimately going to landfill. It has been estimated that separating glass recycling at the kerb would make it possible to get up to 90 per cent glass recovery. That is why ever since we announced the four-bin system I have been calling on Darebin council to get on board. Unfortunately I have to report that to date they have been very reluctant, despite the environmental posturing of the Greens political party.
That aside, I want to turn to another very exciting aspect of this bill, and that is the creation of a container deposit scheme. This is what I know locals in my community of Northcote will be happy to see in 2023. Over the last couple of years I have received hundreds of emails supporting a Victorian CDS and have heard directly from many more about how excited they are to see this announced. At its most basic level a container deposit scheme is a cash incentive for people to return drink containers for recycling, but it is so much more than that. We know that drink containers make up almost half of Victoria’s litter. A CDS reduces the amount of litter and the run-on impacts of this on wildlife. It will also reduce council clean-up costs and create new jobs and fantastic local fundraising opportunities for clubs, charities and community organisations.
This bill is about creating a sustainable and thriving economy for our state. The changes contained in it will likely impact every Victorian household, providing better recycling options but also encouraging us to think meaningfully about our relationship to the resources that we rely on. Collectively the actions outlined in the bill go to the heart of what we need to do to preserve and improve the way of life that we are all so blessed to have. I have no doubt that we can do with the recycling sector what the Andrews Labor government has done with the renewable sector, and that is to take an environmental problem and turn it into an economic boon for Victoria. Right now we as Victorians are living and experiencing a whole economic and societal transition, and it is wonderful. I am very excited to keep up this work with my community. I want to thank the minister for her leadership and vision, and I wholeheartedly commend this bill to the house.
