Businesses looking to improve their triple bottom line by reducing waste have government-funded resources available to assist them.
Barwon South West Waste and Resource Recovery Group (BSWWRRG) works with businesses, community and councils across the Barwon South West region to find ways to reduce and recycle waste and plan for future waste and recycling needs.
BSWWRRG can help businesses of all sizes and in all aspects of waste reduction.
RETHINK YOUR FOOTPRINT
Rethink Your Footprint is a free waste self-assessment tool to help businesses understand waste and recycling activities in the workplace. It involves a workplace completing a self-assessment survey. Once the survey is completed, a BSWWRRG staff member will provide free advice on implementing strategies and practices to reduce waste in the business.
Find the Rethink Your Footprint online tool at www.reduce-recycle.com.au/business/business-efficiency.
REGIONAL INNOVATION FOR A CIRCULAR ECONOMY (RICE)
The RICE project’s goal is to create a thriving circular economy in the Barwon South West region. Circular economies reduce pressure on the environment, boost economic growth and create jobs. A key part of this is encouraging local businesses to move to a more circular way of working where waste is eliminated. This could be achieved through better design, re-using or sharing resources or using digital assets. RICE is a collaboration between BSWWRRG, state and federal government, the City of Greater Geelong, Geelong Manufacturing Council and Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials.
ZERO WASTE MAP
Helping the community to find organisations that can assist them to reduce, reuse and recycle is the objective of BSWWRRG’s Zero Waste Map. Listing on the online interactive map is open to all organisations that can demonstrate waste and litter reduction goods or services.
From battery drop-off points, repair shops and unpackaged co-ops to print shops that offer 100 per cent recycled papers and implement a wide range of recycling in their operation, the map is building a picture of low-waste goods and services across the Barwon South West Region. To register your organisation, visit map.reduce-recycle.com.au (no www).
Ashley Pittard, BSWWRRG’s Executive Officer, believes there is a huge opportunity for regional businesses to “build back better” after the pandemic and implement sustainable change.
“Business owners are looking for cost savings and new sources of income. Now is the perfect time to consider the circular economy. Making more out of our limited resources makes great business sense.”
Barwon South West Waste and Resource Recovery Group is a proud sponsor of the Geelong Business Excellence Awards and congratulates all finalists on their achievement and wishes them the best of luck.
For more information about any of these projects, contact Barwon South West Waste and Resource Recovery Group at info@bswwrrg.vic.gov.au or visit www.reduce-recycle.com.au
