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CIRCULAR ECONOMY MARKET DEVELOPMENT GRANTS OPEN FOR 2020 |
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The Circular Economy Market Development Grants are open for 2020 with up to $100,000 (GST exclusive) funding per applicant.
Private sector businesses must be able to provide 50% matched funding which cannot include non-financial (in-kind) contributions. For industry associations, local councils, research institutes and not-for-profit organisations, the program will contribute a minimum of 50% and up to 100% of eligible project costs and can include in-kind contributions.
Total funding of $300,000 will be available for the program in 2020-21.
To find out more information, click the link below.
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GRANTS NOW AVAILABLE FOR CIRCULAR ECONOMY INNOVATIVE MATERIAL REUSE AND RECYCLING PROJECTS |
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The NSW Environment Protection Authority has just launched new intakes for its Circulate industrial ecology grants and Civil Construction Market Program.
For Circulate, grants of up to $150,000 are available for innovative, commercially oriented industrial ecology projects that will recover materials that would otherwise be sent to landfill, and to instead use them as feedstock for other commercial, industrial or construction processes.
For the Civil Construction Market Program, grants of up to $250,000 are available for civil construction projects that reuse construction and demolition waste or recyclables from households and businesses such as glass, plastic and paper.
Applications are open until 5pm on Friday 12 February 2021.
Visit the EPA website links below for program details and information on how to apply.
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ELECTROLYTE MANAGEMENT – A KEY ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFIT WHEN RECYCLING LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES |
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Lithium Australia subsidiary Envirostream Australia Pty Ltd has been awarded an E-Waste Infrastructure Grant by Sustainability Victoria (ASX announcement). The grant will be used to install processing circuits at Envirosteam’s Melbourne facility, enabling efficient recovery of electrolytes from spent lithium-ion batteries.
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AN EXPONENTIAL PROBLEM. WILL SAFETY DRIVE THE FUTURE OF THE LITHIUM-ION BATTERY? |
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Lithium-ion batteries offer a light and highly efficient way to store and reuse energy. As a result, they account for the vast majority of “installed power and energy capacity”, according to a report released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. But while we are carrying around our phone’s in our pockets and driving electric cars powered with over 7,000 individual cells, lingering questions remain about their safety.
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RECYCLING VICTORIA INNOVATION FUND |
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Applications are open for the Recycling Victoria Innovation Fund and is available to businesses, charities, industry groups and associations, research institutions.
The Recycling Victoria Innovation Fund (Innovation Fund) supports innovative circular economy opportunities for businesses in Victoria.
These opportunities are aligned to the principles of:
- designing out waste
- maintaining product and material value over a longer period of time.
There are two streams within the Innovation Fund:
Stream 1: Food Innovation
For collaborative partnerships that identify opportunities and apply innovative circular economy business models and practices for food waste or for the food sector
Stream 2: Collaborative Innovation
For collaborative partnerships that identify, develop and/or scale-up innovative circular economy business models and practices. The projects need to address systemic barriers with innovative thinking and practice.
An online information session is being held on 2 December and applications close 15 February 2021. To register for the information session or find out more, click the link below.
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RECYCLING VICTORIA BUSINESS SUPPORT FUND – STREAM 1: IDENTIFICATION GRANTS |
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Applications are open for the Recycling Victoria Business Support Fund which will support businesses (including not-for-profits and charities) and business-led groups (including trade and industry associations) to identify, develop and implement circular economy approaches within businesses or across supply chains and sectors.
The Fund will primarily target waste prevention, reuse, remanufacture and upcycling. Innovative recycling approaches will also be supported, where they develop new recycling markets in Victoria.
There are 2 grant types:
Stream 1: Identification grants – For individual applicants or collaborative partnerships to investigate how to adapt and apply circular economy business opportunities and approaches.
Stream 2: Implementation grants – For individual applicants or collaborative partnerships to implement solutions across one or multiple businesses. These grants will support the business to implement evidence-based circular economy business opportunities and approaches in Victoria.
An online information session is being held on 3 December and applications close 12 March 2021. To register for the information session or find out more, click the link below.
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SPENT BATTERIES BOOST CROP YIELDS |
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Lithium Australia NL (‘the Company’) has reported positive results from fertiliser additives derived from spent batteries. Company subsidiary Envirostream Australia Pty Ltd (‘Envirostream’) recovered manganese and zinc from spent alkaline batteries; these were then blended with conventional mono-ammonium phosphate (MAP) fertiliser as micronutrients and used in field trials in an area that forms part of the Western Australian wheatbelt.
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HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT BECOMING AN ABRI MEMBER? |
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ABRI members are actively involved at the forefront of developments in industry and government to address the rapid expansion in the market and ensure that solutions to battery stewardship are practical and far reaching. Together, we influence policy, participate in research, facilitate trials and develop best practices to ensure that battery handling and recovery options are safe, efficient and business friendly. Our members represent the entire supply chain – importers, retailers, energy providers, recyclers, as well as government and research. We rely on member support to provide the latest information, events, best practices and industry trends. If your organisation finds these activities relevant, now is a good time to become involved.
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CIRCULAR ECONOMY INTERN PROGRAM – WRIQ |
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The Waste Recycling Industry Association of Queensland (WRIQ) has recently launched a national internship program. The program provides young people across Australia access and exposure to the circular economy through unpaid internships which:
- they need to complete to finish their degrees
- sometimes take the form of 6 – 12 month industry projects
To find out more, download the internship flyer and future leaders booklet below.
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REVIEW OF THE WASTE AVOIDANCE AND RESOURCE RECOVERY ACT 2007 |
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The Government of Western Australia has released a discussion paper and is seeking feedback on the review of the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Act 2007, the principal legislation for waste management in Western Australia.
The Act requires that the legislation be reviewed every five years. The review seeks to consider the effectiveness of the legislation in meeting its objectives for reducing waste and encouraging resource recovery and its alignment to the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Strategy 2030.
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INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AGENCY REPORT - ENVIRONMENTAL LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT OF RESIDENTIAL PV AND BATTERY STORAGE SYSTEMS 2020 |
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Findings revealed in the latest International Energy Agency study (Task 12) titled “Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Residential PV and Battery Storage Systems 2020” can be found below.
This study was co-led by Australian engineer Dr José Bilabo from UNSW, and found that residential solar PV with battery storage can reduce emissions up to 10 times compared to grid electricity from coal and up to 5 times compared to natural gas.
Below is a 1-page summary of the report and press release, and a link to the original report which can be found on the IEA website.
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GERMAN AGENCY FINES TESLA FOR ALLEGEDLY FAILING TO COMPLY WITH BATTERY RECYCLING LAWS |
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Germany’s Federal Environment Agency (UBA) has imposed a fine of twelve million euros on US elecric car maker Tesla for failing to comply with battery recycling regulations, Philipp Vetter reports for newspaper Welt am Sonntag, citing documents Tesla submitted to US stock exchange supervision authority SEC.
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VIRTUAL BATTERY SEMINAR, 7-10 DECEMBER 2020 - 8 HOURS TRAINING |
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Shmuel De-Leon Energy invites you to join 8 hours battery virtual seminar taking place as 4 parts of 2 hours each on 7-10 December 2020:
7 December, 2020 – Part 1 – (2 hours) includes 2 sections – Battery Essentials and Primary Batteries
8 December, 2020 – Part 2 – (2 hours) includes 2 sections – Rechargeable batteries and battery Packs Design
9 December, 2020 – Part 3 – (2 hours) includes 1 section – Battery Safety Training
10 December, 2020 – Part 4 – (2 hours) includes 1 section – Amprius – New extreme Energy Density Li-Ion cells with 100% Silicon Anode
Registered attendants will receive the training presentation (Presentations are confidential for internal use only)
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DESIGNING BATTERIES FOR EASIER RECYCLING COULD AVERT A LOOMING E-WASTE CRISIS |
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As concern mounts over the impacts of climate change, many experts are calling for greater use of electricity as a substitute for fossil fuels. Powered by advancements in battery technology, the number of plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles on U.S. roads is increasing. And utilities are generating a growing share of their power from renewable fuels, supported by large-scale battery storage systems.
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FORTUM ANNOUNCES “BREAKTHROUGH” IN BATTERY RECYCLING |
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Fortum has developed a new method to recycle lithium from rechargeable batteries. The Finnish company calls it a patented “breakthrough technology and a new recovery method” designed to reduce the environmental impact of recycling lithium.
Only Fortum did not disclose details. While the statement makes clear the obvious, growing demand EV needs recycling concepts, making a case for eco-conscious consumers and so on, it remains unclear what the actual procedure and new method will be.
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