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PC's theorising on waste management

The Good Oil by Rod Brown*

I was grumpy because we were finalising some funding submissions, and Federal agencies harp on about clarity of thought and conciseness in the applications. I then took a break to read the 443 page draft report by the Productivity Commission (PC) on Waste Generation and Resource Efficiency (May 2006). Talk about double standards from the Federal Government! This report provides the rationale for waste management policies, and a guide to industry, Local Government et al. But it's so convoluted and overloaded with resource allocation theory - hardly for anyone in a hurry. The terms of reference were surely drafted by Treasury. The only brevity is the website - www.pc.gov.au But LG people might care to note some of the PC's observations:

• Waste policy should be about achieving the best possible outcomes for the community, not prescribing one technical solution at the expense of others.
• Aspiring to eliminate waste altogether is unrealistic and can lead to perverse outcomes if recycling is pursued at any cost. (Note ACT Government's No Waste by 2010 Strategy!)
• Residual levels of externalities from modern, fully complying landfills appear to be small. Any further tightening of regulation needs to be carefully assessed.
• Greenhouse gas externalities from landfill should only be addressed within a broad national response to greenhouse gas abatement.
• Getting prices for waste disposal right will help to reduce waste generation and achieve an appropriate balance between disposal and recycling. Basic forms of 'pay as you throw' pricing, and charging for larger bins or more frequent services, should be more widely adopted.
• The case for using landfill levies to address externalities is weak. They should not be used to achieve arbitrary recycling targets, nor as revenue raising devices.
• In large urban centres, scale and planning issues suggest that Local Governments are no longer the most appropriate authority to be managing waste issues.

Gippsland Water - perseverance pays

Gippsland Water copped some ribbing three to four years ago for running an open day for locals to inspect its sewerage works. Well, they have had the last laugh! The Victorian Government has committed $50 million to the Gippsland Water Factory - an innovative wastewater treatment and recycling facility at Maryvale, near Morwell - converting up to 35 million litres of domestic/industrial wastewater into eight million litres of recycled water daily.

An interpretive centre will also showcase the technology and act as an education resource. The Gippsland Water Factory is a first in Australia, highlighting Gippsland as a leader in sustainability and innovation. The project will also address the odour currently created by the open channel section of the Regional Outfall Sewer. Construction starts end of 2006.

Tasmania - Adventure Island?

Last month I spoke at the LGAT conference about some future development agendas for Tasmania. I suggested regions think about a 'positioning strategy' - just as businesses do - and the creation of a strategic architecture that helps firms capture or create business opportunities. This architecture is a unique combination of physical infrastructure, technologies, core competencies and human capital that can take advantage of a business or trade opportunity.

Well I got to thinking that Tasmania is nice compact region, an excellent brand and credentials in environmental management, a track record in manufacturing, and the need for value adding niche industries. I posed the question - could Tasmania develop a strong adventure and leisure industries agenda? Let me explain. There are three major adventure chains in Australia - Paddy Palin, Kathmandu and Mountain Designs. Three years ago, I browsed around the latter's Launceston outlet and asked the manager if there were any Tasmanian products in stock - he could only point to packets of beef jerky. But the shelves were full of high value, foreign and interstate product lines:

• hiking boots and thermal clothing - Europe, USA
• hiking and camping cooking utensils - France, Switzerland
• specialist measuring and optical equipment - Switzerland, Germany, Japan
• energy food and drink - New Zealand, Queensland, NSW and Victoria
• kayaks and small, specialist boats - New Zealand
• fishing equipment - Japan, RO Korea, Taiwan, China.

There were no Blundstone boots (an iconic Tassie firm since 1870), or kayaks, or maritime gear in which Tasmania has some standing. The prevailing view seems to be that Tasmania, and indeed Australia, cannot compete against cheap imports in these industries. But it hasn't stopped New Zealand developing a strong presence in adventure products, or Rivers making quality footwear in Ballarat, or RipCurl and Quiksilver making Torquay a world centre for surf wear. Their approach is to have a global network of facilities, with the high value manufacture and management activities located here. If this has any resonance with you, there is a Federal program to facilitate action in this field - or give me a ring.

Regional Projects Register

The Cockatoo Group has recently established Regional Project Register to identify projects (or ideas) of all sizes that:

• would benefit from scoping, better positioning or funding cocktails
• might be of interest to politicians in the lead up to elections
• have elements that fit Federal or State programs, such as infrastructure, R&D, Export Market Development Grants or the Regional Partnerships Program

might be bundled with like projects for institutional investor involvement.

The project categories are marine, rail, roads/bridges, freight hubs, energy, water/environment, commercial development, manufacturing, agriculture value adding, aquaculture, health, education and the arts. The cost of lodging your project is FREE and confidentiality is assured. The process begins with an email or phone call to us about your project or idea - you then provide some basic details - we then provide you with some preliminary, frank advice on how it might be progressed.

* Rod Brown's Canberra based consultancy group, Australian Project Developments Pty Ltd, specialises in industry/regional development and government liaison. For further information telephone (02) 6231 7261 or email apd@orac.net.au

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