Victoria's Circular Economy Act and establishment of Recycling Victoria - May 2022 Update

Update - 5 May 2022

News and information about key reforms that are part of the Victorian Government’s circular economy plan, including establishment of Recycling Victoria.

The Victorian Government is investing more than $515 million to transform the state’s waste and recycling systems. This includes $380 million to deliver its circular economy plan, Recycling Victoria: a new economy, for a cleaner, greener Victoria with less waste and pollution, more jobs and a thriving circular economy.

The Circular Economy (Waste Reduction and Recycling) Act 2021 (CE Act), enacted in December 2021, underpins Victoria’s transition to a circular economy and the establishment of Recycling Victoria.

In this update:

Recycling Victoria to provide sector leadership, stewardship and oversight
appointment of the Interim Head, Recycling Victoria
the staged establishment of Recycling Victoria.

Recycling Victoria to provide sector leadership, stewardship and oversight

Recycling Victoria will commence operations on 1 July 2022. Its functions include:

developing and implementing strategies and plans to foster sustainable, resilient and effective markets within a circular economy
identifying, monitoring, managing and mitigating risks in the waste and recycling sector
overseeing and building capacity for municipal waste and recycling service delivery, including by supporting local governments in the development and management of their procurement, and facilitating strategic procurement for groups of council
setting and enforcing service standards in relation to the quality and performance of waste and/or recycling services
overseeing the new container deposit scheme
collecting, analysing and reporting on data about the waste and recycling sector
conducting inquiries into the waste and recycling sector on referral by the Minister or on the initiative of the Head, Recycling Victoria
monitoring and enforcing compliance with requirements under the CE Act.

Appointment of Interim Head, Recycling Victoria

Phil D’Adamo commenced as the Interim Head of Recycling Victoria on 14 April 2022.
The Interim Head is critical to the smooth and seamless transition to Recycling Victoria, on 1 July 2022.

Phil’s immediate priorities include:

overseeing the transition of staff and functions from existing arrangements into Recycling Victoria
engaging with stakeholders in local government and industry
overseeing initial operations
establishing Recycling Victoria’s organisational leadership and culture
progressing business and strategic planning for Recycling Victoria.

Phil brings a wealth of regulatory and stewardship experience to the role, having held many senior executive government roles in Victoria and Western Australia.

Staged establishment of Recycling Victoria

Recycling Victoria has adopted a staged establishment model, progressing through three phases

Establishment
Build and evolve
Fully operational

Diagram showing the staged establishment of Recycling Victoria

This model allows for:

establishment of Recycling Victoria as a new regulator from 1 July 2022
strong engagement with stakeholders to develop an effective operating model
alignment of Recycling Victoria’s work streams with the development of future regulations and standards
maintaining continuity of important services previously undertaken by waste and resource recovery groups (WRRGs) and Sustainability Victoria.

Recycling Victoria looks forward to welcoming the staff from the WRRGs on 1 July 2022 as they transfer to Recycling Victoria. WRRG staff bring critical expertise and local connections, allowing Recycling Victoria to maintain and build on regional presences and local relationships.

Recycling Victoria will also welcome the transfer of Sustainability Victoria’s data, insights and intelligence function and staff.

The transfer of these staff ensures that Recycling Victoria starts with an excellent knowledge base, experience and expertise in multiple areas.

Early priorities in RV’s establishment phase include:

Engagement: developing a Charter of Engagement and establishing at least one Advisory Committee (members with regional and local government experience).
Cross-agency leadership and collaboration: continue development of working relationships and MOUs with key players such as EPA and SV.
Strategic Procurement: developing a strategic approach and underpinning processes, including the Strategic Procurement Framework, the Approach to Agreements (s.56 of the CE Act); and model contract provisions (s.57 of the CE Act)
Data and insights: establishing a circular economy data baseline.
Preparatory work to support establishment of specific functions, underpinned by regulations, including waste to energy and container deposit scheme oversight.

Learn more about Victoria's circular economy plan

Visit the website

We acknowledge Victorian Traditional Owners and their Elders past and present as the original custodians of Victoria’s land and waters and commit to genuinely partnering with them and Victoria’s Aboriginal community to progress their aspirations.

Manage your preferences | Opt out using TrueRemove®
Got this as a forward? Sign up to receive our future emails.
View this email online.

PO Box 500
East Melbourne, | 8002 Australia

This email was sent to joshua.rule@mwrrg.vic.gov.au.
To continue receiving our emails, add us to your address book.