Friday 30 August 2024

WARR INDUSTRY URGES VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT TO URGENTLY ACT ON VAPE DISPOSAL

The Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association of Australia (WMRR) welcomes the Victorian Parliamentary report urging the State Government take urgent action to address the battery fire crisis enveloping the waste and resource recovery (WARR) industry posed by vapes and other battery powered items. 

Victorian Parliament’s Public Accounts and Estimates Committee in its report into vaping and tobacco controls has recommended the following in relation to vape disposal:

- Victorian Government provide further funding to expand the current e-waste disposal program in place across Victoria’s councils to include e-cigarettes (recommendation 4),
- establish nationally consistent vape waste disposal guidelines and regulations (recommendation 5),  
- urges the Commonwealth Government establish a dedicated vaping product stewardship scheme (recommendation6),
- community education campaign on the risks posed by vapes including how best to dispose of the items (recommendation 7). 

“The WARR industry welcomes recognition these products need to be removed from the general waste stream and urges the Victorian and

Commonwealth Governments, to adopt all these recommendations immediately,” WMRR Chief Executive Officer Gayle Sloan said. 

“The Victorian Government has already funded more than 100 e-waste collection sites across Victoria, expanding these to take vapes and other battery-powered items should be done as a matter of urgency, given the risk these items pose to WARR facilities and workers,” she said. 

“Faced without a proper collection pathway, consumers often dispose of vapes in the bin where they pose a huge fire risk for our workers, trucks and facilities especially when crushed.

“All battery-powered items pose a fire risk to WARR industry workers, vehicles and infrastructure when disposed of incorrectly, and it is vital we have a safe disposal system implemented as a matter of urgency by all states, while the Victorian and NSW Government continue their work on a battery regulatory impact statement for consideration by the Environment Ministers later this year, which will ideally include a national product stewardship scheme for all battery waste including vapes.

“To date, the only state WMRR is aware of that has committed to funding collection points for these embedded batteries is NSW and we look forward to those coming online shortly. WMRR calls on all states to commit funding now and establish safe drop off points and keep our industry and our workers safe,” Ms Sloan said.