Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Governments must play a critical role in breaking our plastic addiction and reducing plastic pollution. Christmas is a time when the amount of waste Australia produces increases by 30 per cent. I don't doubt that the ongoing waste and recycling crisis in Australia will be on the minds of many Australians over summer.

The recent collapse of the soft plastics recovery scheme, REDcycle, exposed how desperately our nation needs real waste reduction, packaging and recycling reform. Coles and Woolworths took control of the REDcycle soft plastics stockpiles at the beginning of this year with an instore soft plastics recycling scheme scheduled to resume now at the end of the year. Yet here we are in December, going into Christmas, and still consumers have no options other than to toss soft plastics into their rubbish and ultimately landfill. Australians are furious about this. We know that most people want to do the right thing at home and sort soft plastics for recycling, but a lack of demand for recycled plastic is restricting investment in the new infrastructure required to recycle it in the first place. Hence, we are seeing more stockpiling of plastics.

So the big question is: why are plastic stockpiles getting bigger? And why is there a lack of demand for recycled plastic products and, therefore, no new investment in recycling infrastructure? It's because the government is still refusing to do its one important job—regulate the plastic producers, packaging industry and retailers with strong waste reduction and recycling targets set in law. It is a government responsibility to solve this problem. It shouldn't be a problem left to the consumer. Voluntary approaches have failed us for decades. A failure to mandate packaging waste targets in law means that big plastic producers won't be held accountable.

Minister Plibersek has signalled her intention to mandate national waste targets. However, she is moving at a glacial pace. This is infuriating many Australians. It must be an election issue if this is not dealt with soon.

Jess Walsh (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you. Senator Whish-Wilson. Senator Babet.