By Melanie MacGregor, Flinders University Progress towards a legally binding global treaty on plastics pollution stalled and went into reverse this week. The United Nations Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, ran overtime. It’s likely to conclude this evening, without agreement. This is an incredibly disappointing result. As a member of the Scientists’ Coalition…
What were the five biggest stories of the week? Here’s what visitors to @AuManufacturing were reading. 5) 11 grants awarded under Supply Chain Uplift Program Recipients of grants under Round 5 of the state government’s Supply Chain Uplift Program have been announced, with approximately $800,000 awarded to 11 Victorian businesses. State manufacturing minister Colin Brooks visited Hanwha…
Social enterprise Soft Landing, which was recently awarded a grant from the state government’s Circular Economy Investment Program, has shared its plans to establish Queensland’s “first dedicated mattress recycling site to offer non-virgin material streams including steel, timber and textiles”. According to a statement from the company on Wednesday, it will collaborate with South East…
AnteoTech receives $2.6 million R&D tax rebate Surface technology company AnteoTech, which is commercialising products for the battery and medical technology industries, has announced receipt of $2.59 million in cash for 2025 under the Research & Development (R&D) Tax Incentive. In a statement on Monday, it said the rebate from the Australian Tax Office “relates…
Iondrive has been awarded a grant of up to $3.9 million through the federal government’s Industry Growth Program, which will support battery metal extraction and potentially scale up “urban mining” work under development using the company’s solvent-based process. According to an ASX statement from Iondrive on Tuesday, the grant covers half of eligible pilot plant…
The Deakin University-led Recycling and Clean Energy Commercialisation Hub (REACH) and enzyme-based plastic recycler Samsara Eco plan to “fast-track world-first technology” for understanding and recycling with “specific additives like dyes, finishes and coatings” in textile waste. According to a statement from REACH on Friday, the project will support Samsara’s efforts “to recycle more waste at…
Boral’s Blended High-Grade Compaction Sand (HGCS), which it describes as an “environmentally sustainable and easily compacted alternative for pipe laying applications”, has been approved for use by Sydney Water. According to a statement from the building materials company on Tuesday, the now-approved non-standard product was designed specifically to meet the utility provider’s materials specifications. It…
Researchers from the University of Southern Queensland have developed a technique to convert discarded face masks into valuable components for electronic devices, addressing a major global pollution problem. The study, published in Nano-Micro Letters, found that more than 950 billion masks equivalent to about 3.8 million tonnes have been discarded worldwide over the past four…
Enzymatic recycling startup Samsara Eco and sportswear company lululemon have built on a partnership first announced in May 2023, announcing a ten-year offtake agreement that “could see” Samsara’s material “support approximately 20% of lululemon’s overall fibres portfolio”. The news follows R&D work that has resulted in the world’s first enzymatically recycled nylon 6,6 product sample…
Livium announced on Tuesday it had commenced discussions with Australian and international developers of rare-earth element extraction technologies as part of its strategy to expand into adjacent circular economy opportunities. The company said REE extraction represented an extension of recycling services for its enterprise client base, with discussions progressing with developers focused on collaboration, including…