Trucking rubbish a ‘waste’

THE desperate need for a regional recycling facility to be built in Cairns has been laid out in dollars and cents.

Recyclable material left in yellow-lid bins across Cairns currently goes to a waste transfer facility to be sorted, bundled by type, and sent on the back of a diesel-guzzling truck to Brisbane.

A report before this week’s Cairns Regional Council meeting revealed it cost $66 per tonne to transport the material to the state capital.

For products such as paper and cardboard, the 1600km transport cost was actually greater than the commodity price received.

“The effect of the recycling market disruption created by China has significantly affected council’s MRF (materials recovery facility) product markets, reducing the value of

MRF commodities,” the report stated. “While some commodity prices for higher value materials such as aluminium and high density polyethylene (HDPE – such as milk bottles) have rebounded, other products such as paper and cardboard are still significantly impacted.”

The situation has led to a bizarre state of affairs where the State Government is offering councils grants of up to $250,000 to help with those transport costs.

Cairns Regional Council has applied for the funding but it ends in June 2021.

It means the expiry date of the status quo – taxpayers subsidising ratepayers – appears to be arriving faster than any meaningful recycling infrastructure project in Cairns.