8 May
2006 - Thirty-seven projects across Australia
will receive more than $2.7 million to extend
the nation’s used oil collection and recycling
network.
The Acting Minister for the
Environment and Heritage, Senator Eric Abetz,
said today the projects would be funded under
the Australian Government $35.4 million Product
Stewardship for Oil (PSO) programme.
“This is a seven-year programme to help protect
Australia’s environment from the damaging effects
of carelessly discarded used engine oil,” Senator
Abetz said.
“Not everybody realises that
used oil contains heavy metals and chemicals,
which, when released into the environment, build
up in soil and water and can be absorbed by plants
and animals and ultimately by humans.
“Every year Australians buy
more than 500 million litres of lubricating oil
for motor engines and industry. Since the PSO
programme began in 2000, 800 collection facilities
in all parts of Australia have been established.
“In the past five years, the
volume of used oil collected, recycled and reused
in Australia has increased by 40 per cent, from
160 million litres to 220 million litres a year.
“The grants I am announcing today will provide
another 100 or more collection points at local
landfills, waste transfer stations and other locations
for the public to drop off their used oil. The
grants will also support the efforts of rural
industries and remote communities to recycle used
oil.”
Senator Abetz said projects to be funded included:
• establishing 10 used oil collection
facilities for ricegrowers on farms in the Hay/Balranald/Deniliquin
area of the Murray Darling Basin – the region’s
ricegrowers produce more than 1 million litres
of used oil each year only 30 per cent of which
is currently recycled ($174,500 to the Ricegrowers’
Association of Australia)
• hosting a grand oil muster to collect used oil
currently stored on remote pastoral communities
– this oil poses a significant fire hazard and
could potentially leak into the environment ($100,000
to Cattleman’s Association of the Northern Territory)
• improving environmental health and Indigenous
employment opportunities by supporting used oil
collection by remote Aboriginal communities in
north-west South Australia ($334,805 to the Anangu
Pitjantjatjara Services).
