Improving Water Quality Through Waste Oil Collection

Synopsis

A number of Western Australian Water Campaign™ councils have participated in a used oil collection program administered in Western Australia initially by the Federal Department of the Environment and Heritage and then by the Western Australian Local Government Association’s Municipal Waste Advisory Council (MWAC). This program allowed for prefabricated used oil collection units to be established in their local government area. The program is designed to improve the distribution of, and access to, used oil collection infrastructure in Western Australia, and includes education and promotion activities to maximise the use of the facilities.

The Water Campaign™ councils that have participated in this program are the Shires of Augusta-Margaret River, Boddington, Cuballing, Harvey, Kalamunda, Mundaring, Murray, Wandering, Waroona, the Town of Bassendean and the Cities of Bayswater, Mandurah and South Perth.

Why is local government involved in used oil collection?

In excess of 500 million litres of lubricating oil is sold each year in Australia, and of this amount, over half is collected and recycled after use. However, a large volume of this used oil remains unaccounted for. Anecdotal evidence suggests this “missing oil” maybe sitting in temporary stockpiles; retained in scrap equipment; lost to the environment at collection points; put out for rubbish collection; or illegally dumped (in parks and reserves or in waterways and stormwater drains).

A survey conducted by MWAC found that the total amount of oil used by do-it-yourselvers in Western Australia was approximately 43L per person per annum. This survey also found that disposal the method listed by 52 per cent of do-it-yourselvers was inappropriate (Australian Government, 2005)..

Disposing of used oil improperly has the potential to pollute land, waterways, reservoirs and the ocean. The Department of the Environment and Heritage determine that one litre of used oil can contaminate up to one million litres of water. As the primary body responsible for waste management and with an increasing ability to play a role in water management, local governments have significant potential to assist with the management of this problem (Australian Government, 2005).

How does the program work?

Water Campaign™ participating councils have applied for and received either a prefabricated 2250L or 4500L internally bunded, collection tank and/or an oil drum storage unit. Once the councils received the infrastructure they underwent training in the use of the facilities, secured a contract for the collection of the oil and committed to reporting on the volumes of oil collected.

The councils will also be asked to participate in a community education program to inform community members of the presence of the unit and instruct them how to use it. The program will be tailored to each council’s particular demographics using the results of a survey conducted at the beginning of the program.

The program is based on the concept of product stewardship which recognises that manufacturers must take responsibility for the downstream impacts of their products. A levy is collected from oil producers and importers to fund the used oil collection program. For more information on Product Stewardship and the National Waste Oil recycling program go to http://www.oilrecycling.gov.au/. The funding for collection facilities in Western Australia ceases in 2005.

Costs

Councils are not required to contribute financially to the project. Grants to Water Campaign™ participating councils have ranged between $10,000 and $25,000. The councils were required to contribute officer time to arrange the contract for collection, aspects of the infrastructure installation, maintenance, monitoring and in some cases minor site works. The facility becomes the property of the councils after it is delivered. Councils are also required to participate in advertising the service and in delivering a community education campaign to their community.

Benefits

Reduced contamination of waterways and groundwater through the inappropriate disposal of motor oil. Currently the units have not been operating for long enough in order to report on the actual volume of oil collected. This information will be reported over the coming years.
A survey will be conducted in 2005 which will assess the benefits of the project further.

Lessons learnt

The program coordinators have anecdotally found that organising the purchase and delivery of collection facilities on a statewide or regional basis ensures;

• excellent bargaining power for purchase of the units;
• coordination on the location of the units and therefore the units are located for ease of collection and at optimum spacings to service the maximum population;
• units are of a consistent quality.

It was found that in rural areas it was best to include a drum collection unit with the facility as drums were often left at the site of the collection tank.

ICLEI-A/NZ would like to acknowledge the assistance of Ms Danielle Witham in the production of this case study. This oil collection initiative was made possible through funding from the Federal Department of the Environment and Heritage, through the Product Stewardship Arrangements for Waste Oil Local Government Used Oil Collection Infrastructure Small Grants Program.

References

Australian Government (2005) Used Oil Recycling website - http://www.oilrecycling.gov.au/program.htm Department of Environment and Heritage

For further information about this project in Western Australia contact:

Rebecca Brown
Acting MWAC Project Coordinator
Email: rbrown@walga.asn.au
Phone: (08) 9213 2063

For further information about this project in other states see the Department of Environment and Heritage website http://www.oilrecycling.gov.au/index.html