Wealth from Waste research collaboration launched

A new research collaboration, led by the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), aims to determine the value of above-ground resources - the metals contained in discarded goods.

The three-year research program will be led by UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures researcher Dr Damien Giurco, who noted, “We’ve found that recovering the five million tonnes of metals such as iron, aluminium and copper locked up in landfills or discarded products could provide up to 70% of Australia’s metal consumption each year.

“We are seeing products, supply chains and business models being redesigned in forward-thinking international centres to exploit the vast value in recycling metals reclaimed in waste.”

Institute for Sustainable Futures Director Professor Stuart White speaks at a panel discussion for the launch of Wealth from Waste. Picture by Xavier Mayes.

Other partners in the program include the CSIRO, Monash University, University of Queensland (UQ), Swinburne University of Technology and Yale University. Teams drawn from the different universities and disciplines will undertake four distinct but interconnected research programs:

1. Recycling systems: barriers and enablers for industrial ecology in Australia.
2. Future resource value: characterising stocks and mapping impacts.
3. Developing business models for future value chains.
4. Transition pathways for leadership in resource stewardship.

“The project aims to identify economically viable options for the recycling of metals from existing products in Australia,” explained Dr Glen Corder from UQ’s Sustainable Minerals Institute (SMI).

“The potential reward from recovering and recycling waste metals is significant, worth up to $2 billion a year to Australia.”

According to UTS Business School’s Professor of Sustainable Enterprise Suzanne Benn, unlocking the potential of the ‘circular economy’ will ensure Australian companies retain their competitive advantage.

“In a circular economy, the re-use and remanufacturing of products becomes standard practice, so that companies start to close the loop on their daily operations,” she said.

One such company is floor designer Desso, whose CEO, Alexander Collot d’Escury, said the circular economy is more than just recycling.

“Companies such as ours are beginning to see the benefits of making a product good from the start,” Collot d’Escury said. “Through design and innovation, we make products that deliver outstanding value in design and functionality and thus contribute to people’s health and wellbeing.”

More information on the program can be found on the CSIRO website