The continued development of Australia’s major metropolitan areas contributes to the global rise in urban waste. Effectively managing it is a crucial, sometimes overlooked, byproduct of this growth.
This should not come as a massive surprise. Despite the benefits that comes with effective waste management, many people still choose to take shortcuts. The focus of this blog hopes to offer just one reason why this should change.
This blog explores the current ways of managing Australia’s urban waste as well as what measures can be taken in the future to continue striving to find more effective and sustainable ways to engage with it.
What is Urban Waste
Urban waste loosely refers to any waste type that is created either in or because of an urban setting. Common examples include both household and business waste created in major metropolitan areas like Melbourne or Sydney.
Most urban waste is caused by general daily activities. The demographics of the urban area often determines the main type of waste being produced. As urban areas tend to house more people, waste types like industrial waste is often uncommon.
That said, many people do not necessarily follow the best waste management systems to handle their own waste. This is no different when it comes to urban waste. It is essential therefore that Australia’s systems for managing urban waste is considered.
Urban Waste Management Techniques
Urban waste management techniques mirror general waste management techniques and best practices. The slight differences often come about depending on the waste types that need to be disposed of.
It is important to note that the techniques below merely reflect a select few methods of managing Australia’s urban waste. Newer techniques are constantly being developed and updated. They are subject to change and run in accordance with various waste collection restrictions.
Additionally, while they might appear simple on paper, there is a level of danger if they are not done by a professional waste management team.
Landfills and Dumpsites
Landfills and dumpsites are familiar ways of managing urban waste and other waste types. These services have remained popular due to their ease of use and relatively low maintenance and work loads.
That being said, many modern waste management systems are looking for ways to not simply discard with waste. Many environmentally friendly waste management systems seek to find value in waste.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Reduce, reuse, and recycle reflect three popular waste systems, admittedly in part due to the ease of the catch-phrase. However, this does not mean that it is a system without great value, especially when done by waste collection services.
They reflect a growing desire, both within the waste management industry and exterior to it, of finding more efficient ways to manage waste. This should be the primary goal of any waste system, whether urban or not.
Bioremediation
Bioremediation is a waste system that seeks to tap into more efficient means of waste disposal used by many services. Waste products degrade naturally, so having a system that encourages this goes a long way in being more efficient and eco-friendly.
Often, the bioremediation process involves placing microorganisms into waste products, commonly into contaminated water, and allowing it to become neutralised. This makes the product safer and potentially able to be reused or recycled.
Incineration
Incineration or the burning of waste is quite a popular method of getting rid of large amounts of urban waste by converting it into another form. However, incineration can negatively increase greenhouse gas emissions if done incorrectly.
However, incineration has proven to be a very popular method of managing urban waste in particular. It is well known that cities like Singapore run their electrical grid off incinerating their waste.
Composting
Composting is one of the oldest forms of waste management that humans use. This is because it relies on the natural tendency of matter to decay. The benefit of composting is that this decayed substance is valuable.
There are many methods to compost waste. Luckily for the average homeowner, setting up a composting program is quite simple. Most major urban retailers sell items like composting bins or green bins to give you the headstart.
Technology and Urban Waste
Technology and urban waste figures have an interesting dynamic that is not uncommon in the waste industry. On the one hand, technology helps human find more efficient ways to manage waste. On the other hand, they create new waste types that need to be disposed.
There are numerous waste services that have dedicated their efforts to addressing these everchanging issues. They hope to ensure that the waste collection services are clean and efficient.
Waste Generation in Australia’s Urban Areas
As of 2023, Australians generate approximately 75 million tonnes of waste each year. Urban regions account for nearly 40% of the total waste. Leading population cities like Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth are greatly responsible for this figure.
Common large contributors to these figures is the construction and demolition sectors given the large quantity of waste material that they create. Additionally, urban vehicles constitute a wide range of waste figures given that they produce both pollution and are themselves a type of waste.
Urbanised areas have a greater proportion of the population as compared to rural regions. This leads to an overall higher level of waste in the country. Urban areas are expanding rapidly which is creating a greater need for consumer products and as a result, more waste.
Municipal Solid Waste
England, Australia, and Canada often cite the experience of metropolitan areas as the waste problem. That can be most easily explained by packaging food and other consumables, which also includes electrics, into rubbish and sending it to a landfill.
MSW, or municipal solid waste, is the most popular form of waste in urban regions. Items collected under MSW are food leftovers, papers, and plastic used to package products, and even old electronics.
Recycling Rates
The more populated sections of the country are worse off than lesser populated regions. For example, areas like Melbourne have a staggering recycling rate of about 70%.
Areas such as Perth hover closer to 40%. Such figures portray the need for improved waste management techniques across the region.
Plastic waste
The increasing concern about urban waste management is the case of the expendables plastic items. Globally, Australia stands out for its contribution to landfill plastic waste. In the year 2021, Australians threw away approximately 3.4 million tonnes of plastic, a large percentage of which was sent to landfills.
Although the government has attempted some initiatives such as the banning of plastic bags in some states, plastic usage is becoming more rampant in towns. The private sector along with the city councils are under increasing scrutiny to come up with feasible solutions to mitigate plastic usage.
Environmental Figures
Concern around urban waste is an emerging issue. Urban landfills are also sources of greenhouse emissions, notably the methane gas which contributes to the global warming impact. The Australian government, through the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, states that Australian landfills produce about 20% of the total methane emissions.
It effectively reveals the need to develop and implement measures to reduce the urban waste footprint, of which the most basic are waste composting and advancing the recycling process.
Urban Waste and the Community
While these technologies are based on innovation, community involvement significantly helps in the mitigation of waste in urban centres. Aggressive urban campaigns and education in combination with limited waste disposal laws have enabled a positive transformation in urban areas.
The citizens are, therefore, motivated to mend their consumption patterns, practice recycling, and engage in other sustainable waste management practices. The success of these initiatives implies that urban waste management is achievable in Australia with unrelenting commitment and resources.