New Caledonia ships recylable materials to Australia
Updated
New Caledonia's second largest city is sending its recyclable waste to Australia to be processed, as setting up a recycling plant for paper and cardboard in the French territory isn't financially viable. Even though its costing tens of thousands of dollars to send the material to Australia, the group behind the arrangement insists its neccessary for the environment.
Presenter Helene Hofman
Speakers: Director of Mont Dore Environnement Victor David, Bureau Francais spokesperson Jacques Fayolle
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HOFMAN: In 2007, the city of Mont Dore became the first in New Caledonia to collect recyclable materials. Just 18 months later it has accumulated about 150 tonnes of newspaper, cardboard and plastic, which would fill an Olympic-size swimming pool. However, with such a small population, there are no recycling facilities on the French territory, forcing Mont Dore to look west to it's closest neighbour: Australia's Sunshine Coast. The first shipment, consisting of 45 tonnes of material left New Caledonia this week, and is due to arrive in Australia by the end of the month. It will be then be processed by one of Australia's largest paper and cardboard recycling companies, Amcor. Jacques Fayolle from an organisation for French Pacific Islanders in the state of Queensland known as the Bureau Francais, helped forge the agreement:
FAYOLLE: Recycling like tins, paper, cardboard, plastic is a commodity that is taken on by major countries across the world, Australia being one of them. New Caledonia doesn't have the technology to actually use the product and do something with them. Hence the reason why, whilst they were doing this recycling program in the country, they would get to a point where they had a stock pile and something needed to be done with it, so we sort of gave them the contacts and the assistance of negotiating an arrangement with a local Australian company that would be able to take it off their hands.
HOFMAN: Once the shipment arrives, Amcor will process the material to be re-sold as packaging and paper. The public-private company set up to manage the recycling - Mont Dore Environnement - will be paid 65 US dollars for every tonne of recyclable waste. However, with shipping of that same tonne costing 272 US dollars, the company is far from making a profit. In fact, this first shipment will cost almost 10-thousand US dollars. But the company's director, Victor David, says they can't ignore the benefit to the environment.
DAVID: For the moment, recyclable prices on the world market are very low and therefore the prices paid by Amcor do not cover at all the export expenses so I would hope that the prices will go up for the next round of containers and hopefully Amcor will pay us a little more than they have this time, but as I try to convince people here is that one tonne of cardboard or paper that is recycled is 15 adult trees and there's no price for 15 adult trees that you leave somewhere on the earth.
HOFMAN: For the moment, Mont Dore is the only commune in New Caledonia that offers recycling facilites. However, Mr Fayolle says that if the arrangement with Amcor in Queensland proves successful, its likely a number of other communes will want to get involved.
FAYOLLE: The relationship that Amcor has built with Mont Dore is only the beginning of something good. Mont Dont is the first commune in New Caledonia that actually started this recycling collection and I think you'll find the rest of New Caledonia will follow suit and Mont Dore will be the leading commune to actually do this for the country.
