Environment and industry groups are calling on the new federal Minister for Environment, Murray Watt, to finalise consultations and introduce a mandatory producer responsibility scheme covering the full life cycle of packaging, including soft plastics.
The proposal includes setting obligations and targets for packaging design, recycling and end-markets, with the aim of reducing waste and improving circularity. The groups said such a scheme would address the millions of tonnes of packaging with limited Australian end-markets and support the circular economy.
Australia is part of the high ambition group for Global Plastic Treaty talks in Geneva this week, and the organisations said they expect “high ambition at home”.
Jeff Angel, director of the Boomerang Alliance of 56 NGOs, said, “When such a diverse group gets together on an issue, it means the problem is big and urgent and government can have the confidence it can quickly move ahead in a substantial way.”
Sarah Collier, director, sustainability at Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC), said, “Clear and consistent policy, anchored by a nationally coordinated approach to product stewardship and the recycling value chain, is essential to transitioning the food and grocery sector to a circular economy.”
Gayle Sloan, CEO of Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association of Australia (WMRR), said, “More than two years after Environment Ministers committed to regulating packaging to reduce waste and harmful chemicals, action is overdue. We urge the new Minister to lead by implementing a mandatory, industry-funded packaging scheme with independent oversight, one that cuts reliance on virgin materials, eliminates unrecoverable waste, and supports Australian job creation.”
Barry Cosier, co-CEO of Soft Plastic Stewardship Australia (SPSA), said, “To maximise circularity of packaging, a national packaging and recycling policy framework together with consistent design and recycling standards across the value chain are essential.”
Suzanne Toumbourou, CEO of Australian Council of Recycling (ACOR), said, “Packaging reform is not just an environmental imperative, it’s a structural economic opportunity to realise the full potential of a circular economy for packaging. This means mandating design standards, addressing the real cost of recycling, rewarding the use of recycled materials, and bringing consistency to a fragmented system.”
Chris Foley, CEO of Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO), said, “Extensive consultations have underscored the establishment of an industry-led Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program, improvements to recovery infrastructure, and stronger end-market incentives as key priorities to achieving the National Packaging Targets (NPTs) and a circular economy. Concurrent, timely confirmation of national packaging design standards and recycled content mandates by the Government would maximise the impact of these initiatives, sustaining progress towards the Targets.”
In the Senate on 30 June, Watt said, “Plastic pollution is a global problem and it's going to need global solutions. But we are, in the meantime, getting on with work domestically. We will be doing more over the course of this term in partnership with the states and territories.”
