Policy

MRA has turned 10. A big thank you to all of our clients, friends and colleagues for supporting MRA over these first ten years. We couldn't have done it without you. To mark the occasion, Mike Ritchie looks back on the key points of waste reform, highlighting our successes and identifying key targets for the future.

One of the most interesting Coffs Waste sessions this year was the COAG panel discussion addressing the forthcoming export bans on glass, plastics, paper and tyres where Minister Trevor Evans made a number of interesting key points.

The National Waste Action Plan 2019 was agreed by Federal, State and Local governments setting national targets and actions for reducing waste to landfill. To achieve this, industry, waste generators and local government need the right market signals and regulations to drive the necessary investment.

MRA managing director Mike Ritchie recently sent Minister Kean an open letter recognising the State's successes in waste management and identifying key concerns and potential solutions for supporting resource recovery post COVID-19.

MRA's Mike Ritchie has welcomed the recently released NSW ALP War on Waste policy to invest waste levy funds back into the circular economy. The Recycling and War on Waste policy released by Michael Daley and Penny Sharpe is an important step towards creating the circular economy and achieving a more sustainable balance between the economy and the environment”

MRA is actively engaging in the waste management debate and this week has seen two of our own being extensively quoted on national newspapers. The Financial Review has reported on MRA's submission to the ACCC on the proposed merging of Bingo and DADI, quoting Mike Ritchie on the expected positive outcomes of the merger in terms of improved recovery rates for C&I waste in Sydney.

Responding to Australian Government Department of Environment and Energy's request for feedback on priority issues to be considered in future Australian waste management and resource recovery, MRA has prepared a submission to the 'Updating the 2009 National Waste Policy' (NWP) discussion paper.

Following Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk’s announcement back in March 20th, the Queensland Government released for public consultation a directions paper on the State’s recycling and waste industry.

The Australian Council of Recycling (ACOR) believes that China National Sword offers a once in a generation opportunity to 'reset' Australia’s recycling systems to achieve improved resource efficiency and enhanced economic outcomes. ACOR has summarised its approach under three key focus areas: investment, improvement and innovation.

On 15 October, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) released a copy of its report 'Towards a pollution-free planet'. The report links consumption to waste and then to pollution, with one of the five key messages being: A new approach to managing our lives and economies: sustainable consumption and production, through improved resource efficiency and lifestyle changes, should be promoted; waste reduction and management must be prioritised.

By Mike Ritchie, MRA Consulting Group Despite clear and overwhelming evidence that our climate is changing right now, the appetite for action at a political level is diminishing. In Australia, the Climate Council was defunded, the carbon tax abolished, and a general sense seems to be settling in that climate change doesn’t really matter. Globally […]

By Julien Gastaldi – Business Development Manager, MRA Consulting Group Climate policy is still lagging behind … At the time of writing, it is still not known who has won the federal election. Climate change has been relatively low profile compared to previous election campaigns and – paradoxically – this is good news. It is both […]