War On Waste

Feedback

We received loads of great feedback such as:

"... the best sustainable recycling stations. There was no rubbish and wonderful volunteers." Lisa
"... greenest waste management ever! Well done again QMF!" Melissa
"Absolutely amazing effort! Very impressive. I loved the idea of reusable crockery. Shows it can be done." Jennie
"It was a win, win. So much nicer and easier to eat with recyclable bowls and utensils. Your volunteers were outstanding. You have set the benchmark for all other festivals." Gary
" It was awesome!!!... It should be the standard across society!" Jodie
"It was a fabulous effort by you QMF!! You empowered people! Loved eating out of a real bowl, cups etc and it was noticeable around the venues there was no rubbish!!" Jill

Thanks!

We want to thank our war on waste partners in Caring for our Bays/Bellarine Catchment Network, B. Alternative and Barwon South West Waste & Resource Recovery Group for their support, advice and commitment in achieving these results.

2018 RESULTS

How'd we go?

We worked closely with local experts and organisations in the environment and waste sectors to develop a plan that would see REAL CHANGE in the way waste is handled at a large event and provide a blue print for other events.

The Festival exceeded its targets, achieving a landfill diversion rate of 90.07% - sending the equivalent of just 32 wheelie bins of waste to landfill!

Key stats:

• QMF achieved a 90.7% landfill diversion rate
• 42% of this was organics which was turned into compost for re-use. 
• The equivalent of just 32 wheelie bins of waste was sent to landfill
• By using reusable and fully compostable coffee cups (including the lids), over 2,500 single use coffee cups we removed from landfill. 
• By using compostable food service ware (plates, cutlery etc) QMF offset 4 tonnes of carbon emissions and avoided 592kg of plastic being made
• QMF turned 210kg of soft plastics collected into 3 picnic tables for community use throughout the year (currently on loan to the local Football/Netball club).

Feedback

We received loads of great feedback such as:

"The treatment of waste was superb this year - volunteers at bins was excellent and I hardly saw any single use water bottles - good on you and well done."
"Well done for your efforts on the War on Waste this Festival. The volunteers at the waste bins was an excellent way to make sure the right bins were used."
"The angels at the War on Waste bins were fabulous and I told many of them so. A well thought out system implemented in a way that made me feel like I was part of a good thing."
"Great festival, l was a green team volunteer and 99 % of the public were congratulating us on our job and the cause we were promoting. quite a lot of people saw how we can change our rubbish practices."

THE QMF PLAN

Our plan was based on simple premise:

1. Get the right people on the bus
2. Have a plan
3. Have the hard conversations
4. Communicate
5. Celebrate the wins.

1.	We used existing measures and models as a baseline, in particular the Hierarchy of Waste Reduction
2.	We created a process of continual review. Consultation was key - we’re event organisers by trade, not experts in waste minimisation. We consulted widely and engaged the services of people that live and breathe this area.  Create a waste profile. We researched the waste that we generate, the waste similar events create and considered what we were likely to generate in the future. Considered which waste streams we could reduce, limit or remove altogether. Considered what we had control over (ie waste generated on site vs waste brought onto the site) Considered what streams could re-used or recycled and what we needed to do to achieve that.
3.	What fell out of that for us was that in year 1, separation would be key. We identified a number of streams we could capture, worked out how these could be captured and what resources (infrastructure and labour) would be required to achieve this.
4	The plan was that we would setup 5 x manned bin hubs across the site - reducing the number of bins front of house from over 100 to 40.  Manning of these hubs would be key to ensuring minimal contamination and strong patron engagement.  We were keen to tie the design of the hubs in with the local Caring for our Bays engagement campaigns by incorporating their imagery and messaging.  We worked extensively with contractors to determine the resourcing required to achieve our targets. We trialled new technologies such as the conversion of plastic waste from the event (ie plastic wrap around beer slabs, pallet wrap and ice bags) into community assets in picnic tables - diverting all this waste from landfill. It’s a transition technology however it played an important part in use achieving our aims. These picnic benches are now loaned to the community for use all year round

 If you would like any further information on QMF's War on Waste, please contact our office via hello(at)qmf.net.au or 03 5258 4816.