Coles and Woolworths are ordered to dump 5,200 tonnes of soft plastics after REDcycle fail
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Coles and Woolworths ordered to dump 5,200 tonnes of soft plastics on landfill in major recycling failure
- REDcycle stocked soft plastics in warehouses
- REDcycle had bins outside Coles and Woolies
Coles and Woolworths have been told to dispose of 5,200 tonnes of soft plastics after their recycling program was found to be secretly storing the waste in warehouses.
The NSW Environmental Protection Authority issued the orders to supermarkets after discovering that REDcycle was stockpiling soft plastics at 15 warehouses and storage depots across the state, rather than recycling them as intended.
REDcycle had donation bins at thousands of Coles and Woolworths stores across Australia and halted its recycling operations several months ago, but continued to collect soft plastics.
The recycling program claimed it was collecting up to five million pieces of plastic every day from supermarkets and other partners, including Australia Post.
The mission to dispose of plastics in landfills is expected to cost supermarkets $3 million.
The EPA and Fire Rescue NSW are now concerned about potential fire threats from waste stockpiles in 11 local government areas, although their whereabouts remain unknown.
One of Australia’s largest recycling programs that partnered with Coles and Woolworths secretly stored thousands of tons of soft plastics in warehouses (a REDcycle bin in Coles pictured)
“These stockpiles are stored from floor to ceiling, blocking entrances and preventing proper ventilation with the soft plastic that is estimated to fill an estimated three and a half Olympic-size swimming pools,” the NSW EPA chief executive said. , Tony Chapel.
The recycling program has stored more than 12,000 tonnes of soft plastics at sites in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.
Chappel said the amount of waste found in warehouses was “very worrying.”
“Thousands of customers diligently collected soft plastics and tossed them into the collection bin at their local supermarket because they were confident their waste would be diverted from the landfill and recycled,” he said.
“As we transition to a net-zero and circular economy, supermarkets have a responsibility to customers and the environment to address plastic packaging and take positive steps that contribute to solutions rather than the problem.”
Both Coles and Woolworths have six days to respond to the notice.
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