Organics Infrastructure – Stream 2 Business Organics Recycling grant project summaries
This program stream provides funding for on-site processing equipment to avoid or reduce food and organic waste going to landfill.
| Organisation | Project title | Amount $ |
|---|---|---|
| AMP Capital Investors Limited | Macquarie Centre public area food waste organics collection | 178,300 |
| Council of the City of Sydney | Plates to parks: recycling food waste locally | 304,740 |
| David Jones Pty Ltd | Organic food waste project | 106,569 |
| Taronga Conservation Society Australia | Wild about recycling: diverting food waste and compostable packaging | 187,300 |
| University of Sydney | On-site organic waste aerobic digestor | 376,560 |
| 5 projects totalling | $1,153,469 | |
AMP Capital Investors Limited
Macquarie Centre public area food waste organics collection – $178,300
Macquarie Shopping Centre will increase its collection of organic waste from the Centre’s food court. The project will demonstrate that compostable packaging can be used in retail environments to support the recovery of uneaten food, as well as divert food packaging waste from landfill into compost facilities. It will divert 230 tonnes of organic waste each year. This project may serve as a case study for other shopping centres.
Council of the City of Sydney
Plates to parks: recycling food waste locally – $304,740
The City of Sydney aims to be a zero waste City by 2030 - starting with the City's own buildings. This project includes the installation of four food waste dehydrators at key city buildings, including Sydney Town Hall, Town Hall House, the nearby food court and Customs House. Food waste from these buildings will be collected and turned into soil enhancers to be used throughout the city's parks and gardens.
David Jones Pty Limited
Organic food waste project – $106,569
The redevelopment of the David Jones' Elizabeth Street store will include a new Food Hall. In line with the company's Good Business Journey strategy, the re-development aims to reduce the site's impact on the environment. The Organic Food Waste Project will recycle organic food waste produced in the Food Hall. The project involves installing a dehydrator to collect and manage an average 189 tonnes of organic waste a year for further processing by a licensed third-party composting operation.
Taronga Conservation Society Australia
Wild about recycling: diverting food waste and compostable packaging – $187,300
Taronga has a target of diverting 90% of waste from landfill from both Taronga Zoo (Mosman) and Taronga Western Plains Zoo (Dubbo). This funding will allow Taronga Zoo to purchase an in-vessel composting system, a shredder, bin infrastructure and deliver clear education messaging at Taronga Western Plains Zoo. The system will divert food waste and compostable packaging from landfill. The end product will be used on-site – closing the loop and providing zoo animals with lush pastures to graze and roam upon.
University of Sydney
On-site organic waste aerobic digestor – $376,560
This project involves installing a HotRot in-vessel composting system to process up to 155 tonnes of food and garden organics a year. It will demonstrate best practice and a cost-effective solution for the on-site recycling of food waste. It will include student and staff education and research to enhance knowledge of composting in a commercial environment. The project may act as a case study of separate collection and processing of food waste in a city environment for local reuse of the compost.
In the 2016 round the Environmental Trust approved 3 grants, totalling $850,904.
| Organisation | Project title | Amount $ |
|---|---|---|
|
HealthShare NSW |
NSW Health diversion and avoidance of food organics in hospitals |
500,000 |
|
Southern Cross Care (NSW & ACT) |
20,904 |
|
|
Willoughby City Council |
330,000 |
|
|
|
3 projects totalling |
$850,904 |
HealthShare NSW
NSW Health: diversion and avoidance of food organics in hospitals – $500,000
This project will enable HealthShare NSW, the not-for-profit shared services organisation within the government health sector, to assess the installation of 5 on-site food-organics processing technologies across metro, regional and rural hospitals. HealthShare’s Food and Patient Support Services serve 22 million meals in 155 hospitals across New South Wales every year and currently 11,358 tonnes per annum of general waste is disposed of in landfills, 80% of which is organics.
Southern Cross Care (NSW & ACT)
SCC organics recycling – $20,904
This project will provide commercial-scale worm farms to 4 Southern Cross Care facilities across NSW. The teams at each facility are passionate sustainability champions. Each facility has reduced waste to landfill by increasing its recycling practices, and now seeks to extend recycling to food waste and garden organics through commercial-scale worm farms.
Willoughby City Council
Crows Nest food waste diversion and composting centre – $330,000
The Crows Nest Food Waste Recycling project will enable food waste from the large number of restaurants and cafes that operate in Crows Nest to be collected daily and processed in a nearby food dryer. Each week the dried food will be removed for composting, improving the amenity of Crows Nest by reducing the amount of food in general waste bins and enabling it to be recycled into a beneficial product.
In the 2015 round the Environmental Trust approved 6 grants, totalling $510,289.
| Organisation | Project title | Amount $ |
|---|---|---|
|
Crescent Head Country Club |
42,286 |
|
|
HealthShare NSW |
26,800 | |
|
Mercy Services |
47,000 |
|
|
Southern Cross Care (NSW & ACT) |
100,803 |
|
|
Stix Catering Pty Limited |
91,500 |
|
|
University of Technology Sydney |
On-site processing of organics at the University of Technology Sydney |
201,900 |
|
|
6 projects totalling |
$510,289 |
Crescent Head Country Club
Crescent Head Country Club Food for Fairways – $42,286
Crescent Head Country Club is already recycling beverage containers, paper and cardboard but, like many clubs, the largest part of its waste stream is food waste. This project will install food organics processing equipment on-site, making it a cost-effective alternative to landfill disposal.
HealthShare NSW
Project 98 – $26,800
According to a RMIT study, 98% of all food waste in food and beverage services in Australia goes to landfill. Project 98 is designed to help achieve a 98% reduction in the food waste being sent to landfill by trialling a new food service delivery model for patients in NSW hospitals. There are multiple strategies to help achieve this ambitious goal but one of them is to convert food waste into compost. Funding will be used to purchase and install an in-vessel composting system at Mona Vale hospital, as part of a trial and proof of concept.
Mercy Services
Mercy organic resource reuse – $47,000
Two 5000-litre concrete in-ground worm farms will be installed that will process all kitchen and garden waste on-site. The worm farms will eliminate all organic matter from waste to landfill. Promotion of the worm farm will be an inspiration for similar facilities and to staff and families connected with the Mercy Residential Aged Care Facility leading them to establish worm farms appropriate to their situations.
Southern Cross Care (NSW & ACT)
SCC holistic waste management – $100,803
This project incorporates four Southern Cross Care facilities across NSW. The teams at each facility are passionate sustainability champions. Each facility has reduced waste to landfill by increasing its recycling practices, and we now seek to extend recycling to food waste and garden organics. This project will divert 175 tonnes per year of organic wastes from landfill.
Stix Catering Pty Limited
Stix farm project – $91,500
The Stix farm project will transform 100% of non-reusable food waste into a valuable, nutrient-rich soil conditioner. Stix is passionate about food through the entire chain from soil to plate to waste to soil again. This project will divert an estimated 118.5 tonnes of food waste from landfill annually and convert it into approximately 30 tonnes of soil conditioner that will be used to grow produce at the Stix farm. This project is ongoing and will reduce waste-truck collections by 250 tonnes every year and reduce carbon emissions by 219 metric tonnes every year. It will dramatically reduce the need for chemical fertilisers and will inspire adoption of sustainable best practices across the food-production industry.
University of Technology Sydney
On-site processing of organics at the University of Technology Sydney – $201,900
On-site organics recycling at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) aims to divert and sustainably manage 276 tonnes of food waste from landfill annually. The project will separate and compost uncontaminated food waste from 22 staff/student kitchens, public waste bins servicing 34,500 students, 11 cafes and 5 food outlets. The resultant nutrient rich soil will aim to be used for local parks/gardens by collaborating with the City of Sydney and Leichardt councils. UTS Design and Engineering students will develop design solutions for the project to help reduce contamination in food-waste collection and meet the goal of 100% recycling of food waste at UTS.
In the 2014 round the Environmental Trust approved 2 grants, totalling $340,267.
| Organisation | Project title | Amount $ |
|---|---|---|
|
Hydro Majestic Pty Ltd |
On-site food waste composting for Hydro Majestic and Escarpment Group resorts |
96,075 |
|
The Wrigley Company Pty Ltd |
Wrigley anaerobic digester: waste minimisation and energy recovery |
244,192 |
|
|
2 projects totalling |
$340,267 |
Hydro Majestic Pty Ltd
On-site food-waste composting for Hydro Majestic and Escarpment Group resorts – $96,075
The Hydro Majestic and Escarpment Group resorts will establish a food-waste collection system and a composting facility for food and garden waste. The composting facility at Parklands will produce quality compost products that will be used on-site for food production and landscape management. The system will be integrated into training for hospitality managers of tomorrow through a partnership with the Western Sydney Institute of TAFE.
The Wrigley Company Pty Ltd
Wrigley anaerobic digester: waste minimisation and energy recovery – $244,192
The Wrigley Asquith site produces several high-sugar-content waste streams as a result of the manufacturing of confectionary. Wrigley will divert all the organic waste produced at the Asquith site from landfill by installing an anaerobic digester capable of processing all organic waste leaving the factory, all trade waste from site operations and all food waste from the staff canteen. The organic loading (primarily sugar) is readily digestible to yield biogas which will form part of the feedstock for the existing boiler.