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FoodTech Qld 2019 exhibitor proves environmental responsibility can be a profit

A major waste-to-energy project in Queensland is being used by CST Wastewater Solutions at FoodTech Qld 2019 to show food and beverage producers how environmental responsibility can be a profit not a cost. The technology involved in the far-sighted green energy initiative by leading meat processor NH Foods Australia, at their Oakey Beef Exports facility, is already paying handsome dividends in terms of cleaner wastewater effluent, as well as a reduced fossil fuel environmental footprint and lower energy costs. The same GWE anaerobic technology can be applied to any food, beverage or agribusiness enterprise with a biological wastewater stream. This is not pie-in-the-sky future technology, this is proven, profitable technology which has demonstrated its performance over five years. The technology will be on display on stand C34 at FoodTech Qld at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre July 28-30. In addition to food and beverage processors, the technology can be applied to agribusiness operations including all forms of meat, livestock, poultry, fish and agribusiness, including fruit, sugar, vegetable, grains and other crops. The Global Water & Energy (GWE) COHRAL (Covered High-Rate Anerobic Lagoon) plant involved was installed at Oakey by Australian environmental engineering and green energy authority CST Wastewater Solutions, which recently inspected the plant as it reaches its landmark fifth year of service in southern Queensland. It found the clean, compact and robust plant is in outstanding condition, having required only routine maintenance over that time as it continuously produces 3000-4000 m3 of biogas a day, depending on plant throughput. The generated biogas is directly used in the plant’s existing boiler replacing natural gas. This leads to replacement of fossil fuels and sharpened cost-efficiencies at a time they are most needed during the current Australia-wide drought. The anerobic digestion plant extracts green energy biogas from Oakey Beef Export’s wastewater […]

Smart technologies can improve safety in the oil and gas industry

By Gaurav Sharma, Head of Industries Business, ANZ, Cognizant Employee safety remains a key concern within the oil and gas sector. The nature of tasks and activities makes it a riskier industry than others. Workers’ fatigue is another factor increasing that risk. However, the oil and gas industry is in a prime position to take advantage of technologies such as robotics, wearables, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine-learning (ML) to minimise some of the risks, as well as drive innovation. The risks of fatigue Fatigue is a major contributor to safety incidents in the oil and gas industry. An oil and gas worker’s job includes inherently risky routine and physically demanding tasks such as positioning heavy equipment, climbing on scaffolds, and physical inspections and maintenance. Characteristics specific to the oil and gas industry are also factors increasing that risk, such as fly-in fly-out and shift work conditions, dealing with time zone changes and 24/7 operations, handling hazardous chemicals or working in extreme weather conditions. Research indicates that the injury rate of Australian shift workers is two times higher than other workers, due to fatigue-related factors such as insufficient sleep, disrupted sleep patterns, and extended working hours. Using digital technologies to predict fatigue risk There is an increasing awareness across risky industries that digital technologies have an important role to play in improving work safety. Leading oil and gas providers are now looking to improve their current standards even further through data collection, monitoring, and automation. However, there is still a long way to go to full adoption, as estimates suggest that just one percent of the data currently captured by operators is being used for improvement purposes. These technologies can provide companies with better control on workplace hazards and better training, while improving onsite communications and overall workforce and business […]

There’s still time to enter the Premier’s Sustainability Awards

Entries in the 2019 Premier’s Sustainability Awards close at 5pm on Thursday 13 June. Finalists will be announced mid-August. All finalists are invited to attend the awards’ ceremony on Thursday 10 October – a night of celebrating sustainability leadership, creativity and innovation across 11 categories. 2018 finalist in the Awards’ education category was Albert Park Pre-School for their program, Keeping our Promise to Bunjil, a creator deity, to take care of the children and the land. Jenny Whelan, Administration Director, from Albert Park Pre-School said, “Attending the Awards dinner provided a wonderful opportunity to pause and celebrate as a team. To listen and learn from the stories of others and share time with people dedicated to caring for our world inspired us to dream big.” Finalists and winners are provided with media releases, photos and social media graphics to help promote their involvement with their staff, their customers and their communities. Now in its 17th year, the Premier’s Sustainability Awards continue to grow and reflect action happening across industry, business and community from regional to metropolitan Victoria. So, what are you waiting for? Get the team together, see category criteria and profiles of previous entrants, then lodge your entry at www.sustainabilityawards.vic.gov.au.

Labor needs to put country first not activists

Statement by Greg Evans, Chief Executive Coal Council of Australia If Labor aspires to national leadership it needs to show the way and drag the Queensland government to support the development of the Galilee Basin. The latest environmental manipulation by the Queensland government to delay the Adani coal mine development is a betrayal of the communities in central and northern Queensland. The stalling tactics by the Queensland Labor government reflects poorly on Australia and Queensland as an investment destination and in the case of mining investment, this can be directed to other countries. Other industries and mine owners and developers should receive little comfort that this latest treatment is confined to a single coal mine in the Galilee Basin. It shows that where a concerted activist campaign is waged government will cower to those interests. The agriculture, oil and gas, tourism and other industries with large investment proposals need to be wary that local job providing development and the national interest ranks below appeasing noisy activists. Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Resources Minister Matt Canavan have expressed support for coal and the advancement of the coal industry including the Adani Carmichael coal mine. The Labor Party at both federal and state level needs to do the same without qualification. Australia has the opportunity to participate in an unprecedented expansion for coal demand from Asia in the next decade of an additional 500 million tonnes annually by 2030. If we capture just 20% of this increase this will represent a major economic dividend, unfortunately, Green and Labor policies are working to frustrate this benefit to the detriment of the working men and women of Queensland.

Thermal energy storage system converts biogas from wastewater treatment plant

Energy storage company 1414 switched on its gas thermal energy storage system (TESS) at the Glenelg Wastewater Treatment Plant in Adelaide today, its first commercial pilot site. The company says the technology is the first in the world to solve the issue of effectively storing biogas as thermal energy to produce heat and electricity on demand. TESS technology takes gas or electricity from any source and stores it as latent heat in silicon which melts at 1414°C. The energy from the latent heat can then be reclaimed and distributed as electricity and/or heat when required. A 10MWh storage unit is about the size of a 40-foot shipping container. 1414 Degrees Executive Chairman Dr Kevin Moriarty said biogas from wastewater management to agribusiness and landfill gas was an increasingly important source of energy globally. “This marks a pivotal phase in the commissioning process, firing the burners for the first time and heating up the thermal energy store. Importantly, we will pay for the biogas we use and sell electricity at market prices to test the revenue model,” he said. “The wastewater management industry is watching closely, as are many other heat dependent industries looking to reduce energy costs, save jobs and lower environmental impacts. “Renewables are about more than wind and solar. It’s time to put our vast sources of biogas to more efficient and sustainable use. Naturally occurring biogas has the potential to lower the cost and increase the stability of energy with reduced demand on fossil fuels.” Biogas is produced when organic waste, including human waste, is broken down in an anaerobic environment with the help of bacteria. The 10MWh GAS-TESS is co-funded by the South Australian Government’s Renewable Technology Fund and … Re

One word and a business can make a difference

Perth: Intrepid Cleaning is a commercial cleaning company in Perth, specialising in tidying up businesses, schools, shops, gyms, and more. The company is known for its eco-friendly approach to cleaning services, using only bio degradable cleaners on-site with their clients. In support of the #trashtag movement, Intrepid Cleaning owner Patrick Elliott wanted to see if his company could also help make a difference — and raise awareness not only about his company’s environmentally focused mission — but also about keeping and maintaining public spaces in Perth cleaner and more appealing to the people using them. “I came from being an office worker myself, and I saw first hand how poorly many professional environments and offices were cleaned and maintained. It seemed like the cleaning companies in charge were more interested in getting away with cleaning as little as possible and just make quick money. “So I saw an opportunity in providing thorough and detailed cleaning to businesses, schools, and other non-private facilities. As an added edge, I wanted to make my new company focused on the environment as well, making the choice easy to go with only eco-friendly and bio-degradable cleaners and supplies. Our clients love us for it.” — Intrepid Cleaning founder, Patrick Elliott. Starting in May, the company offers a free spring cleaning of your Perth office or commercial building if you show that you and your team cleaned a public space. Participation works by gathering your co-workers or employees together — then finding a beach, park, or oval in need of cleaning up. Then, fill up at least one or more large garbage bag. Take both a before and after photo of the area your team cleaned up, and then post them on social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or YouTube). Make sure to include the hashtag #trashtag […]

Labor’s climate policy: a decent menu, but missing the main course

Bill Shorten and his colleagues are offering a broad suite of policies, but little explicit mention of cutting out fossil fuels. AAP Image/Mick Tsikas. Nicky Ison, Research Associate, Institute for Sustainable Futures, University of Technology Sydney. The federal Labor Party this week released the details of its keenly awaited climate policy package. With a commitment to cutting climate pollution by 45% on 2005 levels by 2030, compared with the Coalition’s 26-28% target, there was never a doubt that Labor’s policy agenda was going to be more ambitious than the government’s. But what exactly does it include, how does it stack up against the scientific imperatives, and what’s missing? By offering a broad platform, Labor has moved away from a single economy-wide policy solution to climate change, such as a carbon price or emissions trading scheme. Instead, it has opted for a sector-by-sector approach. This is smart politics and policy. By developing a climate plan for each major sector – industry, electricity, transport, and agriculture and land – it is possible to modernise each sector in a bespoke way, thus driving more innovation and job creation while also cutting carbon pollution. Emily Nunell/Michael Hopkin/The Conversation Industry Labor has taken the politically safe option of expanding the Coalition’s “safeguard mechanism” to lower industrial greenhouse emissions. Under this scheme, big emitters are required to keep their emissions below a prescribed “baseline” level, or to buy offsets if they exceed it. Labor has lowered the threshold for the scheme, meaning it will now cover all businesses that emit more than 25,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year (the cutoff is currently 100,000 tonnes). From there, all of these companies will have to lower their emissions by 45% by 2030 on 2005 levels. Some details are still to be determined, including the precise trajectories of emissions reductions, […]

Bad news. Closing coal-fired power stations costs jobs. We need to prepare

Australia’s electricity sector has begun to transition away from coal, with coal’s contribution to our electricity mix falling from around four-fifths 13 years ago to around three-fifths today. Twelve coal-fired power stations closed between 2012 and 2017. There are clear upsides to the transition, among them an ongoing decline in carbon dioxide emissions from the electricity sector. For local economies, however, the closure of a coal-fired power station can create economic challenges, including higher unemployment. We’ve quantified the effects of 12 closures In a new paper in the Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, we use detailed Statistical Area Level 4 (SA4) data to quantify the extent to which local unemployment rates have increased following the closures of twelve coal-fired power stations across Victoria, NSW, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia. There are 87 SA4 regions in Australia, each with an average population of around 290,000 people. We found that on average the regional unemployment rate climbs by around 0.7 percentage points after a station closes. The effect remains observable for year or two, although it varies from region to region. Clearly, labour mobility and the creation of new jobs do not fully make up for the impact of such closures. This means there is scope and need for strategies to smooth the labour market transition as we move towards a lower-carbon energy system. What we found A simple look at the data indicates that local unemployment rates tend to rise after closures, both in absolute terms and relative to what is happening at the state level. We find that this effect remains when controlling for the impacts of other key factors, such as macroeconomic shocks and the coal export price. Burke, Best, Jotzo, 2019 Typically the increase in the first year is around 0.7 percentage points – for […]

Australia and New Zealand Receive Standardisation for Oral Fluid Drug Testing

The Drug Detection Agency (TDDA) welcomes the new standards for oral fluid testing processes and technologies. TDDA has long believed that oral fluid testing technology and processes required reviewing and to become a joint Australian and New Zealand standard. The AS/NZS 4760:2019 (CH-039 Detection of Drugs in Oral Fluids) Oral Fluid testing standard by Standards Australia and Standards New Zealand dictates consistency around testing methodology, the quality of devices required, and how labs manage test samples. “The new standardisation delivers value to employees and employers alike. It provides a framework and guidelines to ensure that oral fluid testing is carried out in a way that will deliver accurate, reliable results,” says Kirk Hardy, CEO, TDDA. TDDA is on track to be the first to achieve cross Tasman accreditation and provide independent and reliable externally audited oral fluid drug testing collection service to International Standards Organisation (ISO) standards. TDDA-Omega laboratories is also seeking accreditation to AS/NZS 4760: 2019 for the provision of laboratory confirmation services. “If a drug tester follows the standard, they’ll use a process that ensures the testing carried out meets the requirements of the AS/NZS 4760:2019, giving it more scientific rigour to withstand legal challenges. We’re also in the process of verifying a device to meet the criteria of the new standard” says Hardy. Even with standardisation improvements with collection, Hardy warns that oral fluid testing isn’t a catch-all testing product, and not all workplace testers are accredited or will follow the standard. “Businesses who care about compliance and the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 need to make sure they’re using an independent, accredited, certified tester that follows the new standard. But companies also need to understand it’s not a one size fits all test,” says Hardy. TDDA recommends utilising a range of different testing methods, […]

Australia Facing a Brick Wall of Blackouts

by Jerry Ellis and Sir Rod Carnegie The Chairman of the Saltbush Club, Mr Jerry Ellis, today warned that Australia needs more reliable baseload power. With the population and the economy growing, but with electricity availability and reliability in decline, we are racing headlong into a brick wall of blackouts. Recession and disruption will probably follow, bringing to mind those memorable 1990 words of Paul Keating: ‘This is the recession we had to have’. Except in this case the recession will be self-inflicted. Much of my working life was in the steel industry in the 1970s and 1980s. It operated 24×7, with large numbers of electric motors requiring a continuous supply of low-cost electrical power. Un-planned interruptions were rare, but when they occurred they were very costly. Now we face the prospect of planned and unplanned loss of power due to the rundown of base-load power capacity. It must be a nightmare for today’s steelmakers and aluminium refineries facing this growing crisis. It is essential that Australia rebalances economic imperatives against populist ideas regarding the release of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. A strong Australian economy is crucial to Australia’s welfare and will also make a valuable contribution to world prosperity. Australia produces a tiny proportion of the world’s carbon dioxide. Even total closure of our industry would have no detectable impact on carbon dioxide emissions or global climate. We urgently need new supplies of reliable energy from coal, gas, hydro or nuclear.” Jerry Ellis was supported by Sir Rod Carnegie, former Managing Director, CEO and Chairman of CRA (Rio Tinto) who said: “It is essential that Australia regains its reputation for cheap reliable electricity or we will lose our manufacturing and refining industries, returning only to our backbone industries of agriculture and mining”. Jerry Ellis once managed Australia’s biggest […]

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