GECA’s new standard to bring transparency and credibility to Australia’s waste industry

GECA has created a national Waste Collection Services standard, which sets a sustainability benchmark for services collecting waste from the point of collation and collection to a lawful processing or disposal facility.

Developed in collaboration with the Better Building Partnership (BBP) and NABERS, the standard aims to improve the accuracy and transparency of waste collection data, resulting in better sustainability performance and supporting service providers’ efforts to minimise their impacts.

According to GECA’s CEO, Kate Harris, “We’re so excited that our new standard means that government and private sectors across Australia now have the opportunity to choose certified waste collection. This in turns rewards those doing the right thing, driving good data, cutting contamination and ensuring recycling gets to the right place.”

Waste generation in Australia has increased significantly during recent years, and some waste is still poorly managed, resulting in significant impacts on health, local and global environments and the economy. Increasingly, waste generators and waste collection services acknowledge the risk of poor waste management.

This month, Sydney-based Organic Recycling Group (ORG) became the first business in Australia to become certified under the standard. “The team at ORG are proud to be part of a business that is continually working to exceed our targets, this standard has enabled the team to have further confidence in our abilities to deliver leading waste management services to our clients,” said Jim McBurney, General Manager at ORG.

Companies certified under this standard will be rewarded through stronger trusted relationships with their existing clients and increase the potential for new clients and contracts. In successfully certifying to the standard companies will show transparency, quality service, accuracy of data for reporting and credibility.

“If you’re committed to doing things better tomorrow than we did yesterday … then you must get behind the GECA standard. For consumers of waste services, it is a trust marque that says these guys get it and GECA will hold them to account. For waste contractors it is a badge of honour and a market differentiator,” said Esther Bailey, Better Building Partnership.

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