Planet Ark’s one-stop shop for recycling information will help Aussies recycle right
By Paul Klymenko 29 October 2020
Planet Ark is celebrating ten years of our Business Recycling service, which has helped over a million Australian workers access accurate recycling information relevant to their industry and location. We’re commemorating this achievement by merging our two free national recycling directories – Business Recycling and RecyclingNearYou – to form one big recycling hub!
Almost 2 decades ago, Planet Ark identified the need for an easily searchable national directory of recycling services so that Australians could see what was available to them, whether it be at their kerbside or nearest drop-off location. With the help of Federal Government funding, RecyclingNearYou was born. This free online resource allows users to search for recycling information either by council area or product, providing the latest recycling information and local drop-off recycling locations at their fingertips. Every year, RecyclingNearYou receives more than three and a half million page views.
With the website’s success, we soon realised that businesses – particularly SMEs – would greatly benefit from a similar service. So, in 2010 we launched Business Recycling with the aim of revolutionising the way businesses manage their waste by promoting cost-saving and environmentally responsible alternatives.
Today, the Planet Ark team is thrilled to celebrate ten years of our Business Recycling program, which has made recycling easier for more than a million Australian workers in the past decade. By merging this platform with RecyclingNearYou, we are now creating a national one-stop shop for recycling information, whether you’re at home or work. I would like to thank the NSW Government for providing the funding to make this possible.
This milestone is incredibly important. According to the most recent 2018 National Waste Report, approximately one third of all waste generated in Australia is waste from businesses. Planet Ark research shows nearly 7 out of 10 Australians agree that having access to workplace recycling makes them happy and improves perceptions of employer responsibility. However, 2 out of 5 Australians also say there aren’t enough recycling options at work, and if there are, employers don’t communicate them clearly.
Workplace recycling is a win-win. Businesses can reduce their environmental impact, improve employee satisfaction and even save money. For example, implementing better sorting systems to reduce general waste can save businesses money by avoiding waste levies that are in place in most states.
Before Business Recycling, there was no easy way for businesses to find all of the relevant recycling services available to them. With our free online national directory, the hard task of searching is done, and businesses can easily find all the solutions they need in one place.
Having said that, we understand the task of managing a business’ waste may seem daunting to some, particularly to SMEs that lack the big budgets for expert management. Fortunately, there are government programs available that may assist with this, such as the NSW Government’s Bin Trim Program which provides free help and support to NSW businesses to maximise its recycling and minimise its waste to landfill. Details of these programs are conveniently listed on Business Recycling to make access for businesses as easy as possible.
Business Recycling enables Australian businesses to address their waste in an environmentally responsible way, all while reducing unnecessary costs and developing a competitive edge by improving business reputation and efficiency. We expect merging Business Recycling with RecyclingNearYou will result in a substantial increase to the visitors to the business platform is, helping many more businesses reduce their impact on the environment and play an integral role in the circular economy.
Paul has worked in fostering sustainability in Australia for over 35 years. In 1987 he co-founded Australian Ethical, Australia’s first socially responsible investment manager with now over $8.5b under management. Paul co-founded Planet Ark in 1992, was its CEO from 2010-2022 and is presently a Board Member and its Chief Sustainability Advisor. He is the key instigator of their Australian Circular Economy Hub which aims to inspire the transition to a carbon neutral circular economy in Australia.
