About Zero Waste SA
Zero Waste SA is a South Australian state government organisation with an important role to play in sustainability.
It promotes waste management practices that eliminate waste or its consignment to landfill. It also advances the development of resource recovery and recycling and advocates for improved waste management policies nationally.
Zero Waste SA provides grants to local councils, the waste industry and business for a range of waste management projects including infrastructure, technology, systems and resource efficiency. It also assists industry with the development of markets for recovered resources and recycled materials.
It supports research into waste management practices and issues, raises community and industry awareness about waste management and funds programs for preventing litter and illegal dumping. Zero Waste SA is funded by 50% of the waste levy paid by waste depot licence holders. Through collaboration, advocacy, financial incentives and education Zero Waste SA is working toward meeting the target to ‘reduce waste by 25% by 2014’ in South Australia’s Strategic Plan. Read our annual report here. (PDF, 3.4Mb)
"While South Australians are great recyclers we need to move the focus to waste avoidance and waste reduction." - Chief Executive, Vaughan Levitzke
Why Zero Waste SA was established
Zero Waste SA’s establishment is the result of the South Australian government realising that a new strategy was needed to increase waste avoidance and recycling. This commitment arose from a recognition that waste management in South Australia was still fundamentally reliant on landfill and that despite our efforts to date we had not substantially succeeded in alleviating this reliance.
On 1 July 2003, the Office of Zero Waste SA was created by proclamation as a statutory authority by the South Australian Government. The legislation to create Zero Waste SA was passed in February 2004 - read the legislation here (Zero Waste SA Act (2004).
