China bans foreign garbage imports Australia announces 100% recycling by 2025

Following the Chinese government's recent decision to ban the import of most foreign waste (recycling, etc.
), Australia's environment minister has now announced that Australia will invest heavily in the creation of new waste incineration facilities and aim to make all packaging materials 100% recycled by 2025
.

Australian Environment Minister Josh Frydenberg said: "We want to see waste, waste reused or recycled
.
”

This is where the government is heading
for funding new waste-to-energy projects such as waste incinerators and landfill gas capture.

According to new research conducted by consultancy Blue Environment (commissioned by the Australian government), China's ban involves about 1.
25 million tonnes of Australian waste
each year.

Reuters also reported that in Australia, about 30 waste-to-energy projects are in operation, mostly confined to small incinerators and thermal power plants, although a few large projects are planned
.

Reuters said China, the world's largest importer of plastic waste, has stopped accepting shipments of garbage such as plastic and paper as part of
a campaign to combat "foreign garbage.
" As exporters struggle to find new buyers for their waste, the ban has upended the global waste disposal supply chain and caused a massive flow of waste from Asia to Europe
.

Commenting on Australia's growing waste stocks as a result of the ban, Max Spedding, convener of Australia's National Waste and Recycling Industry Council, said: "Some stocks are moving and clean materials have been exported, but at prices that were much lower than the purchase price
in China at the time.
”

The rest, of course, is accumulating
.
Hence the "demand"
for incinerators and recycling.
A more effective course of action is to reduce the use of this packaging in the first place.
.
.
But the country doesn't seem to have done so
yet.