Insidewaste___PREBIND_LR August 2016 | Page 29

// Policy adoption of secondary resource thinking; mitigate the risks of environmental pollution and harm to human health; move waste treatment and management opportunities up the waste hierarchy; and provide new business and employment opportunities for all Territorians. To get there, five plans have been developed around regulation, procurement and social enterprise participation, market strategy and development, resource recovery, and emergency waste preparedness. “NT is still, in many ways, 20 years behind in practice compared to the rest of Australia. It has a long way to go. But if you have a political awareness to genuinely have a discussion with the business community, government, and industry, you’ll get a level of change,” Ralph said. “NT is really lacking in the fundamentals because the current government does not get it in a political context.” The first thing that needs to be tackled, according to Ralph, is regulation because this open pit mentality has to go. Ralph hopes that the territory will follow in Queensland’s footsteps and regulate or re-regulate the sector and WRINT wants to be part of that discussion. “We have advocated regulation in Queensland and will have a conversation with the government on July 18. The Queensland government has genuinely listened and now, they are going to re-regulate certain things that the previous government deregulated as a result of what we advocated. Reforms in Queensland, whilst not perfect, resulted in the Waste Recycling Industry Association, Queensland (WRIQ) putting forward cohesive, cognitive arguments. The government listened and all we can hope for are for those types of conversations in the NT,” he said. “You’ve got to have regulatory structure, discipline, high-level policy drive for what you want to achieve, and then you look at the instruments to get there. “But the first thing is to be invited to the table. The EPA and its officers are going to invite you but the political willingness [in NT] is fundamentally missing. The situation was similar in Queensland but now, politicians are engaging business so that makes our exercise easier to get across the line.” Holding parties accountable Ralph is not impressed with how the current government has responded to the sector. For one, it has taken more than six months for the Minister of Environment to respond after Weekly news updates at www.BEN-global.com/waste receiving the EPA’s 2015-2022 waste management strategy and what he came back with were three paragraphs simply thanking the EPA for its efforts and general statements around working with the regulator to improve the territory’s waste management system. “You really have to question the government’s authenticity in taking this seriously. It doesn’t give you any business confidence,” Ralph said. But WRINT is still keen to work with government – whichever party takes the reins come August 26 when Territorians head to the polls – and said it remains focussed, as it did and continues to be in Queensland, and will work with both sides of the political divide. “WRINT is preparing a manifesto for the political parties and post-elections, we will advocate their responses, meet with the ministry, meet with the new executives and discuss how we should move forward,” Ralph said. “Our demand up there will be a formal response from both parties to our manifesto, we certainly want to see what they’ll do about getting genuine policy into a business portfolio, not with the regulator. I think they’re the two critical drivers because one will feed the other. “Frankly, if the Country Liberal Party returns, the industry will have a NT’s waste management, in a political context, generally has very little substance: Ralph. great challenge because the current government is not genuine in addressing the issues. The Opposition certainly understands the links between better outcomes and strong waste management and recycling initiatives,” he added. “I just hope that whichever side gets in, it will take a good look at the document and say, there’s some really good stuff in there, we need to listen to industry and let’s get on with it. But I’m sceptical of the political process. No one has demonstrated any real desire to truly engage at this point.” Whoever wins the elections, we can be sure that WRINT will hold the party accountable to its response to the iw association’s manifesto. AUGUST 2016 INSIDEWASTE 29