Chemical users across Tasmania registered more than 2700L/kg of obsolete agvet chemical for safe disposal through ChemClear’s.
The ChemClear truck received a total of 2789L/kg of agricultural and veterinary chemical waste from farmers and other chemical users.
Under the ChemClear program, chemical manufacturers participating in the stewardship program apply a levy on products which is passed on through the distributors to the consumer at the point of sale.
The 4c per litre levy allows ChemClear to collect and dispose of eligible products from farmers and chemical users for free and also funds its sister program drumMUSTER which recycles clean empty chemical containers.
This year, 1696L/kg was collected for free, while the remaining 1102L/kg were products from unknown and historic manufacturers or companies not participating in the ChemClear program and attracted a fee per litre for disposal.
ChemClear National Program Manager Lisa Nixon said that she was pleased with the result of this collection.
“This was ChemClear’s sixth in the state and we continue to be impressed by the proactive responses we get from chemical users who register their unwanted chemicals for safe disposal with ChemClear,” she said.
“All of these chemicals are shipped back to Victoria for processing as there are no destruction facilities in Tassie to deal with them.
“Not only are they registering their unwanted products and storing them until we come down, they are doing the right thing by the environment and adhering to quality assurance and work health and safety guidelines.”
Manager of Services at Private Forests Tasmania, Arthur Lyons delivered more than 100 litres of obsolete herbicides.
He said the products were more than seven years old and were no longer needed.
“We had accumulated many herbicides over several years and to ensure our chemical store was WH&S compliant I needed to dispose of surplus chemicals,” he said.
“Some chemicals had been decanted and labels on some older containers were difficult to read.
“ChemClear arrived right on time and the handover went like clockwork. I’d recommend ChemClear to others without any hesitation.”
Since 2003, the program has collected a total of 19,983 L/kg of hazardous chemicals for safe disposal from Tasmania and 403,000L/kg across Australia.
Ninety eight per cent of the chemical collected is used as an alternative fuel source in the manufacturing of cement.
Most of the material is destroyed in kilns which reach temperatures in excess of 1800°C.
To register your unwanted chemicals for ChemClear’s next run, call the hotline on 1800 008 182 or visit our Registration Page.