RMF to fund Australia’s first drum pulper for recovered paper

The Federal and Victorian governments are investing a combined $24 million in Australia’s first drum pulper to recycle mixed waste paper and cardboard.

To be installed at a Visy paper mill in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, the drum pulper will process an additional 95,000 tonnes of kerbside waste for manufacture into a range of paper products, including pizza containers and plasterboard lining.

Visy Industries is investing $13 million in the new drum pulper, which the Federal Government has described as “the gold standard solution to the problem of mixed waste paper”.

The state and federal government money is being provided under the $190 million Recycling Modernisation Fund.

Victoria’s Minister for Energy, Environment, and Climate Change, Lily D’Ambrosio, said that the expanded Coolaroo facility will eventually process around 60 percent of the state’s kerb-side paper and cardboard recycling.

“The facility will see an increase of more than 40 percent in the amount of paper and cardboard we recycle in Victoria,” she added.