In the largest environmental overhaul in Victoria in decades, a Liberal Nationals government will end household waste being sent to Victorian landfill by 2035.
The Zero to Landfill policy:
- commits $120 million over four years from the states’ Sustainability Fund to create a Zero to Landfill Fund. This Fund will have a Recycling Futures stream to help upgrade recycling facilities and an Energy from Waste to stream to deliver energy-from-waste projects in Victoria;
- commits government departments to work with industry to expedite approvals to get Victoria’s waste management and recycling back on track; and
- sets an ambitious target to eliminate household waste going to landfill by 2035.
This visionary Zero to Landfill policy will bring energy-from-waste technology currently being used in central Paris, Amsterdam, Germany and Singapore to Victoria along with reforms to recycling.
Large scale energy-from-waste facilities will also create a low emission, baseload energy supply to help meet Victoria’s growing energy needs.
Interim targets will see a 33 per cent reduction in household waste to landfill by 2025, a 66 per cent reduction by 2030 and a 100 per cent reduction by 2035.
The Liberal Nationals will also ensure our recycling processing industry upgrades, so that Victorians’ recycling goes to market, instead of going to landfill as it is under Labor.
A new ‘cash for containers’ program will be introduced, encouraging Victorians to increase recycling and reduce litter entering our natural environment.
Earlier this year, the Liberal Nationals announced if elected it would require government agencies such as Parks Victoria and the Victorian Schools Building Authority to prioritise fully recycled plastic products as part of their purchasing policies.
This would take plastic waste and uses it to create recycled plastic products, such as park benches, bollards, walkways and playground material, which can then be enjoyed by the community.
Under the Liberal Nationals, introducing large scale energy-from-waste and upgrading our recycling capability means that Victoria will no longer need to export our waste and recycling to other countries, nor will we be sending our recycling to landfill.
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