No Time to Waste: Australia’s 5-Year Race to 80% Recovery
♻️No Time To Waste: Last year, Australia committed A$450M+ to protect national parks and preserve the Great Barrier Reef, natural assets critical to its identity and economy. Yet despite this investment in preservation, Australia still buries a third of its waste. With recovery stuck at 67%, the nation is 13 points short of its 80% recovery target by 2030, landfilling ~10M tonnes each year the gap persists.
➡️Australia Isn’t the Recycling Leader You Think
A 67% recovery rate looks respectable, until you stack it against the 68% achieved in the more populous United States, Norway’s 80%, and Singapore’s 97%.
➡️Why the Recovery Engine Sputters
1. Landfill Is Cheap and Inconsistent
With levies from A$111 per tonne in QLD to A$137 in NSW, dumping still beats recycling in several states, while patchy rates fuel cross-border “levy tourism”. Higher OECD averages also suggest room to raise levies.
2. No Nationwide Bans
Germany bans landfill for waste with over 3% organic carbon content and Singapore bars combustibles. The lack of national bans fails to deter disposal.
3. Space Is Running Out
Greater Sydney may run out of landfill by 2030, with Melbourne and Perth not far behind. Yet approvals for waste-to-energy plants and recycling still take years.
4. Stubborn Streams Drag Everyone Down
Plastics recover at 12%, textiles at 13%, compared to 60% and 30% in countries where nationwide deposit-return schemes, extended producer responsibility, and outright landfill bans are in force.
5. Tech and Talent Gaps
AI sorters can lift recovery 30%, and insect or enzyme processes can handle soft plastics, yet pilots struggle for capital and skilled workers outside big cities.
➡️Four Moves for Australia
1. Price Out the Dump, Federally
Standardise levies across all states at metro NSW’s A$173, while raising rates annually above CPI to eliminate interstate arbitrage.
2. Ban First, Build Fast
Pair levies with federal bans on waste over 3% carbon content. Phase out landfill for organics and recyclable plastics. Accelerate approvals for waste-to-energy.
3. Kickstart Recovery in the Toughest Streams
Mandate nationwide FOGO and extend product-stewardship schemes to low-recovery streams, starting with plastics and textiles.
4. Back Tech That Closes the Loop
Promote initiatives that support innovation and landfill alternatives. Launch a RecycleTech Fund and tie local contracts to recovery, not just tonnes hauled.
We spend hundreds of millions protecting national parks and the Great Barrier Reef because we know what’s at stake when nature is lost. The same urgency should apply to keeping valuable resources out of landfill. If preservation truly matters, recovery should too. With five years to go, failing to act isn’t just inconsistent, it’s indefensible.
Reach out in case you want to discuss these findings with us!