Huge boost to recycling

A grant of $2,021,947 will enable the council to develop a construction and demolition recycling plant at the Albury Waste Management Centre to recycle industrial and commercial waste that would otherwise end up being buried.

AlburyCity Mayor Kevin Mack said the centre would be an important boost to the community’s efforts to halve the amount of waste sent to landfill.

“As a community, we’re leading the way in recycling and reuse of goods at the Waste Management Centre and this new facility means we can find new uses for thousands of tonnes of commercial waste such as masonry, timber and metals,” he said.

“It will not only provide a social and environmental benefit, it will also turn rubbish into valuable products that can be used for new construction projects, such as road building.”

The new recycling plant will be complemented by the purchase of new pallet shredding and de-nailing technology, funded by a separate grant of $445,840 from the NSW Government.

The machinery will be used to recover more than 5,100 tonnes of timber from discarded pallets every year. This material will then potentially be used as industrial fuel or other projects requiring a wood product.

The funding package will also pay for the development of a local recovery centre at the AWMC to reclaim steel and textiles from an estimated 3,200 mattresses a year.

With the support of the community and neighbouring councils, Halve Waste expects to reach its target ahead of the 2020 schedule.