The AORA Annual Conference is well established as the principal conference in Australia for the recycled organics industry. Each conference is a forum for education, discussion and networking related to Organics Recycling. It is also an opportunity to celebrate outstanding achievements in the industry.
The Annual AORA Conference features workshops, presentations, Gala Dinner, Networking Function and Equipment Demonstration Day. This is an opportunity to network with industry leaders and gain insight to the latest achievements in the Organics Recycling Industry.
Packaging has number of important functions in our modern lifestyle. It plays a significant role in reducing food waste, managing hazardous goods and protecting life-saving medicine. Over 5 million tonnes of packaging is used in Australia annually. Only half was recycled after use; the remainder ends up in landfill, in our waterways, or scattered across our land.
Plastic packaging, in particular, is extremely wasteful and impacts earth’s ecosystems, on which we depend. Due to poor product design and lack of political, economic and scientific infrastructure, the majority of plastic waste is sent to landfills or disposed of into the environment.
Our natural environment isn’t the only casualty of poor packaging management and recovery. Building a new and sustainable system in Australia will bring powerful opportunities for community impact, job creation and economic growth.
Gaining an understanding of the issues surrounding packaging waste is the first step in mitigating it.
We have invited two Australian experts: Prof Pierre Pienaar, President of the World Packaging Organisation; and Ms Dominique Lamb, CEO of the National Retail Association, to talk about the current issues in packaging and sustainable packaging within Australia and around the world. This will be following with a vibrant panel discussion involving representatives from industry, government and end-users.
Key speakers include:
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Date & Time: 1:30pm for a 2:00pm start – 5:00pm, Wednesday 31 March 2021
Location: Griffith University EcoCentre, 170 Kessels Rd, Nathan QLD 4111
Ticket Fee: Earlybird (by 24 March): $70 inc GST; Late (from 25 March) $100 inc GST; Online attendance also available
Includes tea & coffee during the afternoon with drinks and canapes served at the conclusion
This year, the Resource Recovery, Recycling & Re-manufacturing (4R) Research Hub (4R Waste Hub) will be joining the 3rd National Symposium on Recycled Organics (NSRO) to run our conference as series with limit of 50 attendees physically and we welcome attendees from across Australia and the world to join online.
This conference series will bring together delegates from multiple sectors including business, industry, government, universities, consulting and more to present and discuss advances, new discoveries in business, policies and research results regarding waste and organic waste issues and how we can support reduce, reuse and recycle processes.
The first event in the series will be focusing on Sustainable Packaging: The gap and challenge for Australia and the World.
The Queensland Branch of Soil Science Australia is delighted to invite you to join us for our 2020 World Soil Day and Christmas Lunch with special guest The Honourable Penelope Wensley AC, National Soils Advocate.
Thursday 26 November 2020
12:00 – 3:00pm
Charleston Room, Ovolo Inchcolm Hotel
73 Wickham Terrace, Spring Hill Q 4000
Tickets: SSA Members $95 inc GST, Non-Members $125 inc GST
includes 2-course lunch and 3-hour drinks package
RSVP: 23 November 2020 unless sold out earlier
GUEST SPEAKERS INCLUDE:
ABOUT WORLD SOIL DAY
The date of 5 December is World Soil Day which was chosen because it corresponds with the official birthday of the late H.M. King Bhumibol Adulyadej, King of Thailand, who was one of the main proponents of this initiative.
World Soil Day 2020 (#WorldSoilDay) and its campaign “Keep soil alive, Protect soil biodiversity” aims to raise awareness of the importance of maintaining healthy ecosystems and human well-being by addressing the growing challenges in soil management, fighting soil biodiversity loss, increasing soil awareness and encouraging governments, organizations, communities and individuals around the world to commit to proactively improving soil health.
On World Soil Day – focus your attention on being part of the solution… Small actions can have a significant impact on the health of our soils for Zero Hunger!
SSA QLD Branch is celebrating WSD as Luncheon event on 26 November, with sponsorship from Soil CRC and Rocky Point and co-hosted with the Queensland Farmers’ Federation, Resource Recovery Recycling & Remanufacturing Waste Hub, and Applied Network for Recycled Organic and Waste Management.
National Agriculture Day is on Friday 20 November and is where all Australians are encouraged to celebrate the values that impact agriculture and that drive our farmers to grow world-class food, fibre and foliage. This year, Queensland Farmers’ Federation is co-hosting a breakfast event with the Queensland Branch of Soil Science Australia, titled ‘The Future of Queensland’s Soils’.
Land and soils constitute the foundation for sustainable agricultural development, essential ecosystem functions and food security. Soil degradation is a real and escalating threat caused by unsustainable land uses and management practices, and climate extremes. Soil may be the most overlooked natural resource but there are a growing number of opportunities being recognised across agriculture such as soil carbon storage which is a vital ecosystem service.
At this breakfast, Professor Neal Menzies will be presenting a comprehensive overview of threats and opportunities for Queensland’s soils. There will also be an update on the status of the current National Soil Strategy. The development of a national soil strategy was a recommendation from Major General Michael Jeffery’s most recent report – Restore the Soil: Prosper the Nation. It highlighted that effective soil management will significantly improve agricultural production and profitability, whilst protecting natural resources.
Speakers:
- Prof Chengrong Chen, Griffith University
The conference provides an opportunity for members of the Soil CRC and the general public to find out more about our current and future projects. Of course there will be lots of time to network and collaborate with researchers, farmers, industry and students who are involved in the Soil CRC.
Presentations include:
“Market opportunities for recycled organics within the Queensland Agriculture Sector”
Dr Georgina Davis, CEO of Queensland Farmers Federation
“Economic contribution of the Organics Industry in Queensland”
Nick Behrens – Principal of Australian Economic Advocacy Solutions
Ticketing and Location information will be provided soon.
For further information visit www.aora.org.au.
GUEST SPEAKER: Prof Nanthi Bolan, Leader for Program 3,Soil CRC, University of Newcastle
Soil health, as measured by the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of soil, determines the yield potential of many crops and other ecosystem services.
This presentation will review the literature on the influence of biochar application on soil physical, chemical, and biological fertility, and present the results of a metaanalysis of these data from publications. A treatment effect size estimator commonly employed in meta-analysis is the magnitude of an experimental treatment (i.e., with biochar application) mean, relative to the control treatment (i.e., without biochar application) mean. A typical effect size metric is the response ratio or the relative impact on a measured parameter (e.g., soil bulk density) following biochar application compared to that in control treatment. The meta-analysis indicated that biochar application modulates physical, chemical, and biological properties of soils, and the extent of biochar-induced changes depend on the nature and level of biochar application, and soil type.
Biography:
Professor Nanthi Bolan’s teaching and research interests include agronomic value of manures, fertilisers and soil amendments, nutrient and carbon cycling, greenhouse gas emission, soil remediation, and waste management. Nanthi is a Fellow of American Soil Science Society, American Society of Agronomy and New Zealand Soil Science Society and was awarded the Communicator of the Year award by the New Zealand Institute of Agricultural Sciences. He has supervised more than 50 postgraduate students and was awarded the Massey University Research Medal for excellence in postgraduate students’ supervision. He has published more than 350 book chapters and journal papers and is one of the Web of Science Globally Highly cited researchers for 2018 and 2019.
The workshop was run by Dr Maryam Esfandbod, Business Development Manager for ANROWM, and received 25 attendees from industry, QLD state government and consultancy agencies at 8 October in Chancellor Board meeting room, Nathan Campus, Griffith University. It opened by Pro Vice Chancellor of Griffith Science, Prof Andrew Smith. Program running sheet attached in this document.
Discussion session was chaired by Dr Georgina Davis. It was very interactive among attendees and made a very informative contribution. Here are highlights from program and discussion session:
The characterisation of different organic wastes (food waste, biosolid, green waste, commercial compost and effluents) showed that Heavy metals are one of main issues in most of organic wastes while PFAS/PFOS has failed in few samples. Prof Chen is still working on more organic waste samples. There is a need for further study in addressing how contamination entered organic wastes and helping industry to removing this contamination.
The method for measuring microplastic in soil, solid wastes and effluents was well developed by Dr Mehran Rashti. The results showed that most of the samples had significant amounts of microplastics which needs further study for their interaction with soil organisms and plants as well as their off-site impacts on water quality.
In discussion session, attendees addressed some new emerging contaminants. Dr Georgina Davis proposed few questions and asked attendees to address the questions so we could keep the conversation open for more discussion and understanding of industry challenges and needs.
The 2nd National Symposium on the Beneficial Use of Recycled Organics will be held 20 – 21 June at the Brisbane Riverview Hotel.
Hosted by the Queensland Government and Griffith University, the symposium will see over 100 delegates from universities and government agencies, as well as environmental consultants, land managers and farmers.
To better understand the beneficial use of recycled organics in our environment, the symposium will examine learnings from its application to agriculture, mining, urban environments and infrastructure.
Speakers will discuss research into the use of recycled organic products to enhance agricultural production in degraded and marginal landscapes and enable the environmental rehabilitation.
- Click here to view photos from the Symposium
- Click here to view the Symposium papers (attendee password required)