A new advisory board has been appointed to provide advice to the Environment Minister on issues relating to waste minimisation, Environment Minister Trevor Mallard said today.
The Waste Advisory Board has members from business and communities with extensive experience in the waste area. The board is charged under the Waste Minimisation Act with providing independent advice to the minister and Ministry for the Environment on waste minimisation issues.
"The Waste Advisory Board will add a fresh perspective on waste minimisation issues, including the waste minimisation fund and product stewardship," Trevor Mallard said.
"I am very pleased with the high calibre of the board's members. I believe they have the combined knowledge, skills and experience to provide me with sound advice on matters outlined in the Act.
"The idea of introducing a board received much support through the submissions on the Waste Minimisation Act.
The Waste Advisory Board members are chair Rob Fenwick, Lynne Kenny, Morris Love, John Pask, Sheryl Stivens, Lesley Stone and Nandor Tanczos.
All members were appointed after a public call for nominations and were selected for their knowledge, skills and experience relating to the Waste Minimisation Act, community projects for waste minimisation, industry (including the commercial waste industry), local government and tikanga Māori.
"Now that the Act is in force, I want to start implementing key provisions such as consulting on which products should be priority products, product stewardship schemes, criteria for the funding of waste minimisation projects and the information requirements to implement and monitor the effectiveness of the Act. The board's initial work will be in providing advice on these areas, so proposals can go out for public consultation early next year," Trevor Mallard said.
The Waste Minimisation Act offers economic incentives and rewards to businesses and councils who act to reduce the waste caused by their products. Under the Act's product stewardship clauses, producers, brand owners, importers, retailers, consumers and other parties take responsibility for the environmental effects of their products - from ‘cradle-to-grave'. Product stewardship is mandatory for products that are declared to be "priority" products. (see also other background information on the Act below).
Short biographies of members of the Waste Advisory Board
Rob Fenwick (Chair)
Rob Fenwick is a co-founding director of Living Earth Ltd, New Zealand's largest organic waste management and composting business. He is also on the Executive Council of the New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development and is a previous Chair of LandCare Research. He has extensive experience in waste recovery and is a waste management entrepreneur.
Lynne Kenny
Lynne Kenny is the contract environmental operations manager for the Western Bay of Plenty District Council. In particular, she is responsible for the operation and maintenance of solid waste facilities and waste minimisation initiatives. She has significant practical experience of waste management from a local government perspective.
Morris Love
Morris Love is a specialist in Maori resource management issues and has been director of the Waitangi Tribunal and manager of the Maruwhenua unit at the Ministry for the Environment. He has broad tikanga Māori and governance board experience that will be invaluable to the Waste Advisory Board.
John Pask
John Pask is an economist with Business New Zealand - New Zealand's largest business advocacy organisation. In the past he has been the deputy policy director of Federated Farmers of New Zealand and the policy manager of New Zealand Employers' Federation. He has extensive knowledge and understanding of business systems and processes.
Lesley Stone
Lesley Stone is the environmental coordinator for the office of the Vice Chancellor and property services at the University of Auckland. She has lectured and undertaken research on environmental management with a focus on waste recovery and cleaner production.
Sheryl Stivens
Sheryl Stivens is currently the general manager of the WasteBusters Trust Canterbury. She has been elected (three times) to the Executive Board of Recycling Operators of New Zealand (RONZ). She is well regarded in the community sector and has excellent networking skills.
Nandor Tanczos
Nandor Tanczos has been a member of parliament for the Green Party from 1999 to 2008. He was responsible for introducing the Waste Minimisation Bill to the House and seeing the Bill through to the second reading. He has significant cross-sectoral knowledge and a thorough understanding of the Act.
Functions of the Waste Advisory Board
As specified by section 88 of the Act, the purpose of the Waste Advisory Board is to provide the Minister for the Environment with advice about:
The Waste Minimisation Act also provides for
Businesses need to focus on how to make the most of new opportunities driven by the growing shortage of local and world natural resources. The newly elected chair of the New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development, Bob Field, also chair of Toyota NZ Limited, says the planet’s resources are being stretched as never before by a growing population and higher standards of living.
The truck has been developed to collect some of the estimated 10 million plastic agrichemical containers disposed every year in New Zealand.
A provincial agency is recommending Ontario scrap the $5 per tire "disposal" fee charged to drivers when they get rid of their old tires, and replace it with a levy charged to manufacturers and importers that they could pass on to consumers.
New Zealanders strongly support a levy on solid waste but they are divided on who should receive the money, according to survey results released by the Product Stewardship Foundation today.
The Product Stewardship Foundation (PSF) with New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development undertook a ShapeNZ survey of New Zealanders last week on Waste Levies and Product Stewardship. The survey had 2791 respondents with a margin of error of +/- 1.9%.
The Ministry for the Environment have released the criteria for the Waste Minimisation Fund
The purpose of the Waste Minimisation Fund is to boost New Zealand’s performance in waste minimisation. There is considerable scope to reduce waste and increase the recovery of useful resources from waste. Lifting our performance in recovering economic value from waste also provides environmental, social and cultural benefits and reduces the risks of harm from waste.
This will require investment in infrastructure and systems for waste minimisation and developing educational and promotional capacity. The purpose of the fund is to provide some of the funding to ensure that this occurs.
Efforts to establish a recycling scheme for unwanted computer equipment have hit a stumbling block, with "two or three" multinational computer manufacturers refusing to support a system under which they would pay a levy on imported computers.
Television manufacturers have proposed a levy of about $30 on imported televisions sets to pay for the cost of recycling, and an industry agreement on how to pay for the environmentally-safe disposal of unwanted computers looks within reach.
OTTAWA — The federal government is contemplating a $35-million recycling program to keep its obsolete and unwanted computers and other gear out of the country's landfills, say newly released documents.
A draft analysis by the Public Works Department says a federal scheme is needed because some provinces lack programs to allow Ottawa to safely dispose of its used computers, fax machines and cellular phones.
"A federal program is still necessary over the next five years to ensure the end of life management of federal government IT equipment as . . . there is no guarantee as to when all provinces and the territories will have take-back programs in place," says the analysis, drafted last September.
The Ministry for the Environment has released the Waste Minimisation in New Zealand Discussion paper
Click here to read the document
Click here to visit the MFE website
Hon Trevor Mallard Minister of Environment
15 April 2008 Speech Notes
Environment Minster Trevor Mallard's speech to the New Zealand Packaging Accord One Day Seminar, The Conference Centre, AUT Tech Park.
Business leaders, community groups and local government step up to the Government’s challenge to develop a new packaging product stewardship scheme for New Zealand
Media Release 27th May 2008
Manufacturing companies are increasing differentiating themselves by using Life Cycle Management as a point of competitive advantage in international markets. By learning how to manage the life cycle of products more effectively, companies can realise market opportunities and simultaneously improve environmental performance.
To read more about Life Cycle Management please click here
The Life Cycle Management project is a five year programe that aims to build LCM capability among New Zealand manufacturing companies
Read more about the project, who is involved and what its aims are. lcm_leaflet_2 1.12 Mb
PANASONIC BACKS PSA'S PLEA FOR TV RECYCLING
By Matthew Henry
SYDNEY: Panasonic today ramped up pressure on the Rudd government to implement a national recycling scheme for old TVs, calling for an industry-funded scheme to be operational within three to four years.
Panasonic’s pledge to lobby for the scheme follows a recent letter by Product Stewardship Australia on behalf of leading TV brands expressing frustration and disappointment at environment minister Peter Garrett’s inaction on the proposed scheme.
In September 2007, the government released a cabinet paper of proposed legislation for a national waste levy, product stewardship, reporting requirements on waste data and a consolidation of waste legislation in a new bill.
Demand for recycled goods is down, causing a billion dollar industry to lose much of its steam. But another byproduct of the recycling industry's downturn is the creation of new opportunities.
Thursday, 19 June 2008, Press Release: New Zealand Government
New waste legislation will offer economic incentives and rewards to businesses and councils who do their bit for waste reduction
New Zealand Herald
MP claims full support for levy on landfill waste
5:00AM Tuesday April 08, 2008
Green MP Nandor Tanczos says he has been given unanimous support from a select committee for his Waste Minimisation Bill that includes a $10-a-tonne levy on waste going to landfills.
New Zealanders are almost evenly split over paying 10c an item extra at shops to recycle packaging.
New waste minimisation law allows for compulsory recycling schemes. Implementing one for containers is estimated to cost at least 10 cents per item, according to packaging industry research.
A new nationwide ShapeNZ survey of nearly 2,397 people shows the country is split 36% for to 34% against any new per-item tax. Some 23% are neutral and 8% are not sure.
The challenge for business Organisations that understand that consumers are regarding them through a new green lens and respond to that shift will gain competitive advantage.
Read this interesting article from June 09 Managment magazine.
A US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report on opportunities to cut greenhouse gas (ghg) emissions through improved management of materials and land notes that 37% of the country's total ghg emissions come from the provision and use of goods within the USA.
The Ministry for the Environment as released its new Guide to Product Stewardship for Non-priority Products in the Waste Minimisation Act 2008
The purpose of this document is to provide:
The intended audiences for this document are:
Guide to Product Stewardship for Non Priority Products
A national approach for dealing with Australia's e-waste is closer to being realised, with the public invited to comment on proposed strategies.
A proposed bill in the California State Assembly would require producers of certain products and packaging to change the materials they use and develop better ways to deal with the products when they're disposed of.
