A $1.5m boost is set to help an organic recycling facility expand its production facilities and play a more important role in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
Federal and State Government funding is set to benefit Earthborn Australia’s Palmwoods processing facility, which is owned and operated by sisters Ashleigh and Kristina Brownlow.
Ashleigh said the funding was “great news”.
“It puts us a few steps down the path to getting the high-tech facility built and making it commercially feasible,” she said.
She said the facility, which could cost $5m to complete, would essentially make the business more efficient.
“At the moment, we do windrow composting. Our stockpiles of organic waste are put down in big fields, open to the elements,” she said.
“But (with the facility) we can control the composting process.
“We can put organic waste inside concrete bunkers with fans pumping air up from the floor. Sprinkler systems provide the necessary moisture.
“It’s gives us complete control over emissions. There is a lot more sensitivity within the system and we can speed up the composting process.”
The project will create 10 new construction jobs and six new ongoing positions.
The family-owned business has been operating since the 1990s and the sisters spent much of their childhood at the tip, learning about waste and recycling.
Their father Neville was a leader in organics processing.
“He brought grinders here from America that ultimately couldn’t handle the strengths of Australian hardwoods,” Ashleigh said.
“So, he had them modified and re-engineered to handle Australian timbers.
“During weekends, when I was young, I went to council tip sites to see how it all worked.
“As my sister and I got older, we got more involved, working on the weigh bridge and doing admin, and then we got into the operational side of things. Ten years ago, we took over the management and operation of the Sunshine Coast business.”
Ashleigh said the business was talking to councils from the Sunshine Coast, Noosa and Moreton Bay about the potential to form partnerships and accommodate future FOGO (food organics, garden organics) household bins.
The facility, once completed, is expected to be able to process an addition 22,000 tonnes of organic waste each year, to create high-quality soil improvers.
Federal Minister for the Environment Tanya Plibersek said it would help reduce emissions.
“In Australia, around 13 million tonnes of CO2 is created as a result of organic waste going to landfill,” she said via a press release.
“The increased composting capability of this facility will help us reach our national target of halving the amount of organic waste sent to landfill by 2030.
“We’re not only reducing landfill waste and greenhouse gas emissions, but we are making Queensland soils more productive.”
Queensland Minister for the Environment Meaghan Scanlon echoed Ms Plibersek’s sentiments.
“Organic waste represents a significant proportion of waste generated and disposed to landfill,” she said.
“Earthborn Australia’s work is a perfect fit with the goals of our Queensland Organics Strategy and Queensland Organics Action Plan that provide a clear roadmap for how we can avoid generating organic waste and reduce its impacts on our environment.
“Food waste not only increases household budget costs, estimated at $2200 a year, it also has a serious impact on our environment as unwanted food and garden waste dumped in landfill produces damaging methane gas.
“By 2030, we want to halve the amount of food waste generated, divert 80 per cent of the organic material going to landfill, and achieve a 70 per cent recycling rate for organics.”
Assistant Minister for Regional Development Anthony Chisholm said the facility will be “great for the environment and local jobs”.
“This initiative is a win-win for Queenslanders from the suburbs to the bush,” he said.
“This grant will increase the amount of diverted food and organic waste by 22,000 tonnes per year, which is then processed into high-quality, compost which can be used to enhance agricultural soil, in landscaping, roadsides and urban parks.
“This is great for the environment, great for local jobs and for agriculture.”
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