Zero Waste (S1-02) | City of Greater Geelong

Armstrong Creek Town Centre Precinct Sustainable Management Plan

Zero Waste (S1-02)

A Zero Waste Armstrong Creek town centre would mean reduced contribution to landfill waste, less transportation of waste out of the region and increased re-use and recycling of materials by businesses and residents.

Vision

A Zero Waste Armstrong Creek town centre would mean reduced contribution to landfill waste less transportation of waste out of the region and increased re-use and recycling of materials by businesses and residents.

Creating a waste ecosystem that generates Zero Waste can’t happen immediately but big improvements can be made with little changes.

Practical steps to reduce waste include effective waste separation re-use of waste generated during construction and recycling of organic waste.

Zero Waste means less landfill and raw material demand…

Benefits

The developer	Community / Residents / Commercial tenant	Environment
Smoother approvals process by ensuring that the application addresses the objectives and guidelines of the Precinct Structure Plan A development that meets best practice standards and community expectations Lower waste disposal costs during construction and operation.	Increased engagement and reduced costs through use of re-used and recycled materials Opportunities to reuse organic waste for compost Improved amenity through fewer truck movements Increased manufacturing activity in re-use or recycling	Reduced emissions from decomposing waste at landfills Reduced land contamination at landfills Reduced emissions from transportation of waste to landfills Decreased demand for raw materials.

Guidelines

All development in Armstrong Creek Town Centre should:

S1-02.G1 Provide separated waste streams in public places retail commercial and residential developments

S1-02.G2 Ensure construction maximises re-use and recycling of construction materials

Case Study - Burbank Zero Waste Home

Residential housing construction contributes a significant proportion of Victoria’s waste sent to landfill. Much of this waste results from inefficient practices on building sites such as discarding of off-cut materials and over-delivery of materials by suppliers.

Burbank Homes and RMIT’s Centre for Design addressed this by designing and constructing the first ‘Zero Waste’ home in Victoria. During the construction of the house locatedin Melton South the quantity of waste sent to landfill wasreduced by 99% compared with current standard practices.

This was achieved through reduction of material use control of material dimensions during manufacture to reduce off-cuts and recycling of waste generated by the site.

What do the ‘zero waste’ guidelines mean in practice?

	Residential	Commercial
Demolition and Construction Material waste contributes on average 10% of a project’s total cost of construction	Produce a Waste Management Plan for the development site Reduce the quantity of materials required through careful design Optimise the manufacture of building materials to reduce off-cuts Avoid oversupply of building materials Recycle and re-use building materials either on-site or in the wider community Engage a waste contractor with contractual commitments to diverting a high proportion (>80%) of their waste away from landfill	Produce a Waste Management Plan for the development site Utilise prefabricated or modular construction Recycle and re-use waste on-site Engage a waste contractor with contractual commitments to diverting a high proportion (>80%) of their waste away from landfill
Recycling Up to 40% of waste can be diverted from landfill by composting food and garden waste	Produce a precinct Waste Management Plan Waste management infrastructure for residents Advanced organic waste treatment system for apartment buildings	Produce a precinct Waste Management Plan Waste management infrastructure for businesses and public spaces Advanced organic waste treatment system On-site resource recovery

The table above summarises some of the practical initiatives that can significantly improve the sustainability of different development types and an indication of the costs and benefits. Further guidance on how to respond to all the guidelines is provided in the Reference Matrix.