Plastic Free July is a global movement to raise awareness for solutions to plastic pollution. A newly formed local group, Circular Plastics Illawarra (CPI) is working towards a reduction in plastic pollution all year round.
CPI was one of the outcomes of a community forum at the University of Wollongong's Innovation Campus last December, held in response to the collapse of soft plastic recycler REDcycle. Kylie Flament, CEO of the Social Enterprise Council, convened the forum, which brought together more than 50 local and state government representatives, academics, industry experts, students and concerned locals.
CPI’s 15 members include representatives from the University of Wollongong, Wollongong City Council, Illawarra Shoalhaven Joint Organisation, plastic recycling experts, private sector consultants and citizen community advocates.
One member is Illawarra local Dr Helen Lewis, Adjunct Professor with the Institute of Sustainable Futures and a consultant in plastics and packaging sustainability for the past 30 years.
“The REDcycle program collapsed because they lost their end market for the material and as a result material was stockpiled. This caused a lot of community concern because it was a program that people valued and it was the only outlet for our accumulating soft plastics,” Dr Lewis said.
“The biggest problem with soft plastics recycling is the lack of facilities that can reprocess it back into plastics and other products. This is difficult to do, and most recyclers can’t handle it.
"We need to see more processing facilities for soft plastics, and thankfully there are several large plants under construction or planned in Australia. There is also an opportunity for more small-scale local recycling.
“Recycling is only part of the solution. We’re still in the early stages of CPI, but some of the things we want to do is inform and encourage the community to use less plastic, advocate for better government policies and encourage more collection and processing of plastics in the region."
The group would like to see local councils procure more recycled plastic products.
“Our vision is for a circular economy for plastics in the Illawarra in which problem plastics have been eliminated and all plastic packaging is reduced and then either reused or recycled,” Dr Lewis said.
On a national scale, the National Plastics Recycling Scheme is under development by The Australian Food and Grocery Council. The scheme aims to create a circular loop for soft plastics with kerbside collection through to recycling.
We can all play a part in reducing plastics in the environment.
The priority is to eliminate use of unnecessary plastic, particularly soft plastic. You can do this by refusing plastic bags at the supermarket, greengrocer, takeaway shops and other outlets, and by bringing your own reuseable bags.
Support grocers that sell from bulk containers. In the Illawarra this includes Flame Tree Co-op in Thirroul, The Source in Wollongong mall and Wollongong Nut and Deli.
Volunteer with Surfrider Foundation South Coast and support branch president Susie Crick and her organisation's vision for a plastic-free future. Pick up plastic litter when you’re down on the beach – every bit helps.
For now, hold off on saving your soft plastics but watch this space – we have some great minds working together to reinvigorate soft plastics recycling. The Circular Plastics Illawarra website will be up in a few weeks.
In the meantime, for more ideas on reducing plastics, head to the Wollongong City Council website.
Find out more about Plastic Free July here.
