Technological innovation has resulted in new waste streams, many without clear end-of-life solutions.
Why it matters
When not properly managed, emerging and problematic wastes can have negative impacts on human and environment health. While some products can be replaced with more sustainable alternatives, others are essential for achieving net zero emissions. For these, good design, effective collection systems and strong recycling pathways are needed to keep materials circulating through the economy.
Objectives for 2030
- Design and manufacture products for longevity and circularity
- Continue to phase out problematic and unnecessary plastic products
- Increase the safe recovery of resources for problematic wastes
- Provide safe collection and disposal pathways for hazardous waste
- Develop and implement national or nationally aligned product stewardship schemes for problematic wastes
- Raise community and consumer awareness of problematic wastes and options for their safe collection and management
How we’ll get there
Product stewardship
Product stewardship ensures producers and retailers take responsibility for reducing environmental and health impacts. It can drive better design, enable reuse and improve resource recovery.
Until problematic materials are redesigned or phased out, they must be safely managed to prevent harm and support broader climate and sustainability goals.
Key actions
- Advocate for, support, and promote national solutions to problematic wastes, or consider state-based solutions if required, including product stewardship approaches that restrict hazardous materials, address end-of-life, encourage reuse and repair and eliminate problematic waste.
- Encourage and support research and innovation into circular solutions for problematic and emerging wastes, including design, alternatives, and end-of-life.
Problematic and unnecessary plastics and plastic packaging
Plastic use continues to grow while recovery rates remain low, especially for single-use, soft and hard-to-recycle plastics. Improving design and recycling systems is essential. New national and South Australian measures, including bans on single-use plastics and a forthcoming packaging stewardship scheme, are working to cut problematic plastics and boost resource recovery.
Key actions
- Support the national packaging reform process for packaging to be regulated under Commonwealth legislation, including addressing chemicals of concern.
- Continue to phase out single-use and other problematic and unnecessary plastic products in SA and consider other measures to address plastic use.
- Support national progress to develop a pathway and criteria to soft plastics collection and recycling at scale in Australia.
- Continue to support primary industries to identify and implement actions to better manage plastic waste.
Renewable energy technologies
South Australia leads the energy transition, with renewables supplying over 74% of electricity in 2023–24 and a target of 100% net renewable generation by 2027. Technologies like solar, wind, and batteries are key to reducing emissions, but end-of-life solutions will be needed to recover and recycle the valuable materials in this growing infrastructure.
Key actions
- Consider policy mechanisms which would ensure all new grid-scale solar and wind turbine installations consider circular economy outcomes in project planning, and develop appropriate plans for end-of-life.
- Support the establishment of a national product stewardship regulatory scheme covering solar photovoltaic systems including battery energy storage systems.
Batteries
The growth of consumer electronics and electric vehicles is driving a rise in battery waste. Lithium ion batteries are increasingly common with almost 10,000 tonnes expected annually in South Australia by 2035. These batteries contain valuable metals like lithium and cobalt but also pose serious fire risks if mismanaged. Stronger collection, safe recycling, and design improvements are needed, alongside mandatory product stewardship to recover materials, prevent hazards, and capture the significant economic value of battery recycling.
Key actions
- Consider nationally aligned legislative reform to establish state-based mandatory product stewardship obligations for battery suppliers, prioritising battery types with the highest risk profile.
- Contribute to the development of a national guideline for the safe transportation, storage, handling and disposal of waste lithium-ion batteries.
- Until a product stewardship scheme is in place, as an interim measure, establish a safe and effective collection system for Li-ion batteries supported by a public awareness raising campaign.
- Educate and raise community awareness of responsible and safe management of end-of-life batteries.
- Progress legislative reform to prohibit the disposal to landfill of additional problematic batteries, including clarifying the status of lithium-ion batteries as prohibited from disposal to landfill and disposal through kerbside waste collection bins.
- Identify pathways for safe destruction of damage Li-ion batteries where material recovery is not an option.
E-waste
E-waste is the fastest-growing waste stream globally, with Australian per-capita generation expected to reach 22 kg by 2030. E-waste contains valuable materials like gold, copper and lithium, but recovery rates remain low, and many products also contain batteries, creating safety risks. Current product stewardship schemes cover only some items, leaving gaps –particularly for small electronics and single-use vapes – highlighting the need for expanded, coordinated collection and recycling approaches.
Key actions
- Advocate for the inclusion of all consumer electronic products in a national regulated product stewardship scheme.
- Advocate for a national solution for the safe management of legally sold end-of-life vapes.
Textiles
The global textile industry consumes 3.25 billion tonnes of material each year, with more than 99% of this coming from virgin sources. Australians are among the world’s highest clothing consumers, and while donation to charity for reuse is a popular option, many clothes are too low quality to be worn again. Improving circularity requires durable, repairable and recyclable clothing, supported by design, business models, consumer behaviour, and recycling infrastructure. The voluntary product stewardship scheme, Seamless, aims to increase industry participation and, if needed, regulation could ensure better textile management, with uniforms offering a practical starting point for scalable improvements.
Key actions
- Support circular clothing business models to extend the life of clothing, including rental, reuse and resale, subscriptions, and on-demand manufacturing.
- Support textile stewardship schemes, such as Clothing Stewardship Australia’s Seamless, through policy, programs and infrastructure investment in circular systems for textiles.
- Encourage behaviour change through citizen education on sustainable clothing consumption, buying better, caring for clothes, reuse, donation and appropriate disposal of unwearable clothing.
- Encourage and support the procurement of government uniforms that are designed for durability, reuse, repair and recyclability, and manage government uniforms in line with the waste management hierarchy.
- Encourage research and development into circular textile solutions, including textile recycling and fibre-to-fibre technologies.
CCA treated timber
CCA treated timber, widely used in industries like viticulture and construction, poses serious health and environmental risks if mismanaged at end-of-life. Disposal options in South Australia are limited and costly, with no commercial recycling currently available. Research into end-of-life management and alternative materials, supported by product stewardship, are underway to improve outcomes for CCA treated timber.
Key actions
- Work with other jurisdictions to explore national options to phase out the use of CCA treated timber for particular applications.
- Support the development of:
- innovative and commercially viable reuse and recycling solutions for end-of-life CCA treated timber
- non-toxic alternatives to CCA treated timber products.
- Support the development of an industry-led product stewardship scheme for CCA treated timber that includes addressing sustainable end-of-life management of and circular opportunities for new and legacy waste.
Chemicals of concern and hazardous waste
Chemicals of concern and hazardous wastes hinder circular economy efforts, as they cannot be safely reused or recycled. Safe disposal and management solutions are essential, alongside efforts to design these chemicals out of products. Persistent organic pollutants, including PFAS, HCBs, OCPs and PCBs, are being phased out and regulated through national plans and environmental standards to protect human health and the environment.
Key actions
- Support and advocate for measures that require chemicals of concern and hazardous substances, including PFAS, to be designed out of products.
- Progress amending the Environment Protection (Waste to Resources) Policy 2010 to require that additional contaminants and chemicals of concern added to national or international agreements, such as the National Strategy for the Management of Scheduled Wastes,, be considered as part of EPA decisions relating to environmental and development authorisations.
- Support the implementation of the PFAS National Environmental Management Plan and support actions to update relevant standards to manage PFAS and other chemicals of concern, including emerging.
- Explore and implement suitable solutions to expand options for households to conveniently dispose of hazardous waste.
Learn more about Focus area 4: Address emerging and problematic wastes.
