|
|
|
Tuesday, 16 May 2006 The Ricegrowers’ Association of Australia Inc. (RGA) has announced today that it has received a grant for $174,500 to establish used oil collection facilities for farmers in the rice growing region. The project will be run through the Environmental Champions Program and will establish 10 used oil collection sites for farmers throughout the rice growing region. Peter Evans from the RGA said ‘The Environmental Champions Program is an initiative of the rice industry that aims to provide all growers with a streamlined process for managing natural resources’ The rice growing region produces more than 1 million litres of waste oil annually and currently has no simple means of disposing of the oil. Approximately only 30 percent of waste oil on farms is being disposed correctly for recycling. Much of the oil remains on farms. ‘Farmers involved in the Environmental Champions Program indicated to the RGA their concerns at the lack of facilities. This funding will help mitigate potential problems associated with storing waste oil on farms,’ said Mr. Evans. Locations for the facilities are yet to be finalised, however they will be located in areas where they can be best utilized. The collection facilities will be fully bunded and have a holding capacity of at least 5000L. The RGA will be negotiating with companies to have the waste oil removed from collection points for recycling. It is envisaged that the facilities will be open by June 2007 and be available for use by all farmers. The funding for the project will be provided by the Australian Government’s Department of Environment and Heritage, through the Product Stewardship for Oil Transitional Assistance program. CONTACT |
NEWS & EVENTS |
    |
© Copyright Ricegrowers' Association of Australia |
