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Australia Breaks another Record in Newspaper Recycling

Tuesday, May 10, 2005.

Australia continues to be the world leader in recycling its old newspapers with a record national average in 2004 of 74.5 per cent, an increase of one per cent over the previous year, according to the latest research produced for the Publishers National Environment Bureau by the News Limited Environmental Secretariat.

Keen community involvement in kerbside recycling and enthusiastic support by publishers nationally gave this world-class result, said PNEB executive Director Frank Kelett.

“As has happened in the USA, Australia’s newspaper recycling figures have reached a plateau and the challenge now is to maintain that momentum,” said Mr Kelett.

He said about seven per cent of old newspapers were used around the house as drop sheets for painting, lighting fires or as weed mats in gardens and were therefore unrecoverable. The 2004 figures meant that Australia was recycling over 80 per cent of the available 93 per cent of newspapers, said Mr Kelett.

“It is unrealistic to think we can take our rate of recycling newspapers much higher but the focus is to keep people enthusiastic about recycling,” said Mr Kelett.

In 2004, Australia recycled 772,151 tonnes of newsprint compared to 718,482 in 2003.

Newsprint used in Australia now includes between 20 to 55 per cent recycled material. In 2004, 97,654 tonnes of old newspapers and 61,794 tonnes of magazines were de-inked at the Norske Skog mill in Albury before being turned into new newsprint.

Recycled newspapers are also made into cardboard and other uses including home insulation and papier mache – all egg cartons are made out of 100 per cent recycled newspapers.

Mr Kelett said the growth in recycling rates in 2004 was even more significant when the increase in newsprint over the year was taken into account. Despite circulation overall remaining flat, an increase in pagination in 2004 due to the healthy advertising climate meant an extra 53,670 tonnes, or 7.5 per cent, of newsprint was used over 2003.