Onka will not divulge its plan to address recycling crisis

Onkaparinga Council held a closed-doors meeting last week to discuss the ongoing recycling crisis — but will not divulge the outcome.

• China’s ban on recycled materials leaves councils facing big bill
• SKM Recycling suddenly closes two plants in Adelaide
• China Sword crisis hits recycling plants in Adelaide
• How China’s decision caused mass disruption

Onkaparinga Council held a closed-doors meeting last week to discuss the ongoing recycling crisis — but will not divulge the outcome.

Councillors met for an in-confidence meeting to discuss the sudden closure of Victorian recycling company SKM, which was paying the council for its recycling, and then selling it to China.

Last year, China banned the import of recycled plastic, paper and cardboard from Australia — sparking the crisis.

The company told the council last month it could no longer process its yellow bins, forcing it to make a one-week emergency deal with the Northern Adelaide Waste Management Authority (NAWMA).

The only other recycling facility operating in Adelaide is owned by Visy.

Onkaparinga has been tight-lipped as to how it is dealing with the crisis and would only say that it has an “interim arrangement” in place with Visy.

Visy is charging councils such as Marion about $70 a tonne to process their recycling.

In a Facebook post on the Onkaparinga Council Watch page prior to the meeting, Mayor Erin Thompson said Visy had “temporarily stepped in” to assist the council.

“We can’t sign a new contract with them, though until we know for sure what’s happening with SKM,” Ms Thompson wrote.

“But it is likely to cost council a reasonable amount of money which will put extra pressure on our upcoming budget process.

“I will be pushing the State Government hard to provide some financial support to see us through until we can build our own recycling facility in the south.”

A council spokesman said this was not the outcome of Tuesday night’s meeting and that the council was not able to provide any more information at this stage.

The Local Government Association has called on the State Government to release millions from the Green Industry fund — which councils pay $100 per tonne of rubbish they send to landfill into — to help councils cope with increased recycling costs.

However, the State Government has refused, saying it has already committed $12.4 million to the recycling industry and local government in response to China’s National Sword Policy.