Welcome to Sustainable Living Tasmania's

October 2023 Members' Newsletter

Dear members and supporters

A fortunate group of you all, (including me), completed a tour of the Incat ferry construction works on Saturday 28 October, in Derwent Park, Hobart, with Chairman of the Board, Robert Clifford as our guide, hearing about the future for electric ferries.

It was awesome in every sense – the cathedral-like size of the huge workshops and the scope of the technology. Most of us are used to the household scale of change in technology but this is the industrial future on a grand scale.

(Image above) Inside the sheds, looking out,

(Image below) A 130m e-ferry under construction

From a long career as builders of diesel ferries small and large (think the Tasman Bridge disaster), Incat has pivoted in just the last 18 months to electric ferry construction and Robert Clifford said their order book contains only e-ferries. Europe, where environmental concerns drive thinking, leads the world and is five years ahead of us, according to Robert. The Incat works are geared to build big so they won’t be building e-ferries for the Derwent though he is a supporter of a Derwent ferry system.

The current project is a 130m e-ferry for an Argentinian client who decided, after construction had started, that he wanted to electrify it! If I wrote fast enough to keep up with our guide, this aluminium ship will have 400 tonnes of lithium batteries but will still be much lighter than an equivalent steel, diesel ship, which means less energy needed. It will be shore-charged in 40 minutes when delivered but the first charge in the Derwent will take 158 hours because of the lack of equivalent technology.

(Image above) Here it is under construction with Robert Clifford taking questions.

(Image below) This is what it will look like when launched.

Battery technology is developing quickly which will increase the potential distance range of e-ferries. He anticipates that small nuclear installations may be turned to for their fast delivery capacity (eg France will be able to charge a Channel e-ferry but Dover cannot). He does not see hydrogen as a viable option in the near future. So not simple or straightforward to make the transition to e-vessels! Many ethical questions about the use of resources as well as technical problems, lots to think about. According to Robert Clifford, thousands of e-boats are needed to make the energy transition; some of them will be built in Hobart with a greatly increased workforce. He is confident the market is huge.

When asked if he ever felt nostalgia for the boats of the past, he said ‘The next boat is always the best’.

Thank you to Helen Pryor and Ruth Osborne for photos – I clicked on video on my phone somehow and got lots of footage of my moving fingers and feet!

It was exciting to see the future in production and we are grateful to Robert Clifford for his generous gift of time, enthusiasm and confidence (a great substitute for speaking at our AGM!).

I’m back at the small scale now, planting out my tomato seedlings in my back-garden. With so much in the world that is crazy, this is my peaceful place. Take care of one another.

Best wishes to you all

Margaret Steadman

Can Net Zero Channel Electrify Tasmania?

by Phil Tomney, Chair, NZC Inc.

Well, maybe that’s a bit ambitious but if Net Zero Channel (NZC) can accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels then we’ll achieve our aim of reducing the Channel community’s carbon footprint.

In early 2022, a few of us met to what we could do that would make a difference. We felt that many local residents were concerned by the lack of government progress towards reducing Australia’s fossil fuel emissions and, in May 2022, an audience of over 100 Channel residents voted overwhelmingly in support of NZC’s aims. Since then, NZC has organised three events:

• ‘Electrikhana’, an EV show with over 450 attendees
• ‘In Conversation’, a World Café style event, aimed at understanding the community’s concerns
• ‘Net Zero Houses’, where 6 local residents with low energy-cost homes explained how they had achieved those efficiencies and the financial and comfort benefits.

What we learned from those events was that many residents didn’t know either how to identify the most cost-effective way to reduce their emissions or couldn’t afford the products or didn’t know where to find impartial advice.

Along the way, we learned of Saul Griffith’s philosophy of progressive electrification, and of Rewiring Australia (RA)[1], the not-for-profit co-founded by Saul.

The message is that Australia’s CO2e emissions will be greatly reduced if, when fossil-fuelled appliances, such as a gas heater, gas cooktop or vehicle, are to be replaced the replacement is electric. Using renewable energy, perhaps from rooftop solar PV or ‘green’ electricity, then GHG emissions will reduce with each purchase. This article explains how both the household and the environment benefit How Australian households can go electric, cut emissions and save money | Saul Griffith | The Guardian

In early 2023, NZC contacted Rewiring Australia and expressed our support for their initiatives. This led to an invitation to apply for a place on their national ‘Electrify my Community’ project – and we were delighted to be awarded a place. The project kicked off in early October with the aim of increasing public understanding of the benefits of electrification and accelerating the transition.

The NZC Team are presently planning our project for kickoff in 1Q24 and strongly encourage other Tasmanian community organisations to make contact and join with us on making the EmC project a huge success.

[1] Rewiring Australia

Big W and David Jones pledge cash to tackle waste, as rest of fashion industry told to follow

by Emelia Terzon

ABC News, Wednesday 7 June, 2023

More than half of new clothes imported into Australia end up in landfill, the fashion peak body says.(ABC News: Paul Robinson)

Australia's biggest fashion retailers are being threatened with a mandatory levy on garment sales, after many big names failed to sign up to a new scheme to tackle the 200,000 tonnes of old clothes going into landfill every year.

The Seamless scheme launches today and is being led by the industry's peak body, the Australian Fashion Council (AFC), which received $1 million from the previous federal government to set up the scheme.

The AFC confirmed it directly approached 30 major Australian clothing retailers to be founding members.

Signing up is voluntary and imposes a 4 cent per garment levy on the signatories' sales, with the money to be put towards initiatives such as sustainable design, the resale of used items, and textile recycling.

So far only six brands have signed up: Big W, David Jones, Lorna Jane, Rip Curl, RM Williams and The Iconic.

The AFC says it needs 60 per cent market adoption to raise $36 million per year, making its current membership far below what is needed.

In a speech delivered today at the launch of Seamless in Sydney, which had been sent exclusively to the ABC, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek told tell the rest of the fashion industry it had 12 months to sign up or else face regulation directly.

"That is a drop dead date. No excuses, no extensions," Ms Plibersek said.

If its target is reached, the AFC estimates the scheme will divert 60 per cent of old clothing away from landfill by 2027.

Seamless is being implemented under the federal product stewardship act, which can see waste-stream management enforced on industries through voluntary, co-regulatory or mandatory schemes.

Other mass-produced items being targeted include batteries, solar panels, baby car seats, mattresses, and e-waste.

Why do we need to tackle fashion waste?

Globally, the fashion industry is coming to grips with its environmental impact.

While it is difficult to find concrete numbers, global firms like McKinsey say the industry is responsible for 4 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

A report by the UK government in 2019 concluded textile production contributed "more to climate change than international aviation and shipping combined", consumed "lake-sized volumes of fresh water", and created chemical and plastic pollution.

"Synthetic fibres are being found in the deep sea, in Arctic sea ice, in fish and shellfish," it said.

"The way we make, use and throw away our clothes is unsustainable."

In Australia, the industry's impact is wide-ranging, from its use of water to produce cotton, through to petrochemicals used to make synthetic fabrics, Monash Sustainable Development Institute's fashion sustainability expert Aleasha McCallion said.

"We are directly supporting the fossil fuel industry by supporting things like polyester," she told the ABC.

"It is environmentally extremely costly."

On average, each Australian buys about 56 items every year, much of it polyester and cotton, according to research Sustainable Resource Use conducted for the AFC.

Second-hand or resale fashion is a growing sector in Australia, but clearly not large enough to keep items out of landfill.

Of 373,000 tonnes of new clothing imported into Australia each year, an estimated 200,000 tonnes will eventually wind up in landfill, the research says.

Ms McCallion adds that it is difficult to know exactly what is happening to Australian clothes and accessories when they're sent offshore for donation, with there being "some ethical offshore recyclers" and "some that are less transparent".

"We need to act now," AFC's chief executive Leila Naja Hibri said.

"Our industry, and most importantly our planet, depends on it."

Australia 'overflowing' with unwanted old clothing

Australian textile recyclers are hoping the crackdown on fashion waste will lead to more investment in existing programs locally.

Ben Kaminsky, the co-founder of a textiles recycler in Australia, says his business can barely keep up with the amount of clothing flowing in.

His company, Textiles Recyclers Australia (TRA), receives about 150 tonnes a month from a range of fee-paying sources, including charities that cannot re-sell used goods, through to brand-new pieces from companies that have discontinued uniform designs.

"We all need to visualise a tap with clothing coming out of it, and there's a bucket that gets reused, repaired," he said.

TRA shreds unworn items that it receives into filler for local industry, which can go into things such as mattresses or couches.

However, anything that has been worn is generally baled up and shipped to India for a textile recycler there to handle.

Ben Kaminsky's company receives about 150 tonnes of textiles a month.(Supplied: Textile Recyclers Australia)

The recycler even has to send some things to landfill itself, including when items from mining sites come in so dirty "that they can stand on their own".

"We need more investment to build infrastructure recycling in this country," Mr Kaminsky said.

While he welcomed the AFC's voluntary code for fashion brands, Mr Kaminsky said he was concerned too few of the worst offenders, such as "cheap and cheerful online" retailers, had signed up.

Why didn't more fashion retailers sign up?

The ABC contacted some of the biggest Australian fashion brands and producers, including Cotton On, Myer, Billabong, Kmart, Forever New, and Rivers, to ask why they had not signed up to the voluntary code.

A spokesperson for major fashion chain Country Road said it had been asked to sign up, but it was "focused on delivering" its own sustainability measures, and it had worked with a major charity for a decade to divert waste from landfill.

As well as signing up for a levy, the six brands that did pledge to Seamless are also giving it $100,000 each to get it started.

Ms McCallion welcomes the AFC's scheme as "a great first step" but believes a mandatory scheme is inevitable. She points towards moves in Europe to crack down on fashion consumption and waste.

She said consumers had a role to play by buying less, and fashion brands should slow down their rate of production and focus on sustainability.

"The way to stay in business in the long term is to go sustainable," she said.

"It's what consumers will demand in years to come."

Mr 'War on Waste' helps with a Call-to-Action in Launceston celebrating the 2024 Tamar NRM 'Going Circular' Sustainable Living Festival

Lead-up events Feb 24 - March 1 2024

Sustainable Business & Community Awards March 1 2024

Sustainable Living Festival March 2, 2024

Headlined by Craig Reucassel, from ABC's War on Waste, this will be a week long-celebration, with events throughout the region from Feb 24 - March 2, including films, tours, talks, Going Circular business workshops, cooking classes, sewing workshops, sustainable floristry workshops, art exhibitions, bike rides, pre-loved clothing market, community garden tours and much more.

Craig will also help put out a Call-to-Action to get Launceston's citizens involved in a number of activities focusing on 'Going Circular'. One of those is to collect all the items that local Launceston businesses already collect to be recycled. Festival goers are asked them to bring their ‘rubbish’ along to the festival and place them in bins located at the heart of the event at the Recycling Hub Centerpiece. Each business in the region that collects items as part of their normal business practice has been invited to attend free of charge to promote themselves and to be a collection point at the festival.

Expressions of Interest for exhibitors, workshop hosts, presenters, entertainers and more are now open. Head to www.tamarnrm.com.au/festival for all the details.

To make a tax deductible donation click here

The 'Going Circular'

Sustainable Business & Community Awards

Whatever Happened to the Container Refund Scheme?

by Michael Lynch

In February 2021, the then Minister for Environment and Parks, Roger Jaensch, announced that: “ The introduction of a Container Refund Scheme is a key action in Tasmania’s draft Waste Action Plan. The Government is committed to having the scheme commence operation in 2022.”

This follows an announcement by an earlier Minister for Environment, Elise Archer, in June 2019, that the scheme is expected to be rolled out by 2022. The Minister also announced at the time: “The scheme will encourage positive, incentivised recycling and re-use behaviours, that will help reach our target of becoming the tidiest state by 2023.”

Sadly the reality is somewhat different.

The Tasmanian Planning Commission is currently considering a draft planning directive by Planning Minister, Michael Ferguson, that would put in place consistent rules for where collection points and refund machines can be located. Sites that adhere to these rules would be able to be installed without planning approval.

A key provision of the draft planning directive relates to additional requirements that would be imposed upon over the counter refund points, pop up refund points, bag drop refund points or a container refund machine located within 50 metres of residential areas, requiring them to seek planning approval.

The companies that have been selected to jointly operate the scheme (TOMRA and Cleanaway), have made submissions to the Planning Commission opposing the draft planning directive proposals.

So it very much looks as though the Container Refund Scheme will not see the light of day in 2023, and making it highly unlikely that the Government’s target of the tidiest state by 2023 will be met.

This former paper mill now turns T-shirts and jeans into new fabric

Renewcell 1’s fabric recycling mill is one of the winners of Fast Company’s 2023 World Changing Ideas Awards.

by Adele Peters, Fast Company, 2 May 2023

[Photo: Mark Mahaney/ Levi’s/courtesy Renewcell]

Sustainable Living Events happening around Tasmania

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Deadline 25th of each month