Joining forces in the War on Waste

October 10, 2017

Alex Fraser’s MD Peter Murphy recently presented at the War On Waste Seminar hosted by the Victoria Planners and Environmental Lawyers Association (VPELA). It was a great opportunity to meet Victoria’s best planners and environmental lawyers, and showcase the environmental impact we’re making as Australia’s leading recycler.

The seminar was headlined by Craig Reucassel, of the Chaser and the ABC’s War on Waste series which recently put the spotlight on the need for responsible waste management in Australia

In his address, Craig explained how society’s disposable attitude partnered with inadequate waste management and recycling practices was destroying the environment. He demonstrated how planning decisions impact upon people’s tendency to live sustainably, and the relentless growth of waste streams such as coffee cups, disposable fashion, and mountains of rejected ‘ugly fruit’ that choke landfill and create tonnes of methane emissions.

“How do we change behaviours, how do we make it easy, how do we get the right decisions?”

Craig called for reform across the waste industry –  strategic thinking, transparency and innovation. He acknowledged the mammoth task ahead, likening the war on waste to solving the Rubix Cube, a multifaceted, evolving and complex challenge.

Peter’s address demonstrated the enormous job done by Alex Fraser in fighting War on Waste – as the state’s biggest recycler we’re responsible managing 30 per cent of Victoria’s waste, turning 2.5 million tonnes (3.5 million, nationally) of waste into valuable, quality construction materials every year – enough to fill the MCG every three months. An achievement made possible by a team of great people working across a network of award-winning sites.

Peter explained that responsible material selection was the easiest, most quantifiable way developers could reduce the carbon footprint of new infrastructure projects. He reported the tide was slowly turning when it comes to environmentally responsible material selection – “Governments and developers are growing increasingly interested in the environmental benefits of construction materials”.

After showcasing some of the 240 major infrastructure projects supplied by Alex Fraser, Peter introduced Green Roads and talked about the need to engage the community in the good work we do to gain support for more environmentally responsible development, on a community and a commercial level.

We look forward to working closely with VPELA and its members well into the future.