Environmentally Sustainable Procurement Policy

Mr BELL (Mount Gambier) (15:36): I rise today to highlight a recent policy of the federal government which I would like to see implemented here in South Australia, and that is an exciting step towards a sustainable future and circular economy called the Environmentally Sustainable Procurement Policy.

Starting this June, with construction services projects above $7.5 million, and expanding next year to textiles, ICT and furniture fittings above $1 million, all tenders awarded by the Australian government will require agencies to meet sustainability outcomes. This includes circularity targets for input efficiencies, recovered resources and recycled materials, which will significantly impact supply chains.

Our procurements here in South Australia must ensure they are maximising value for money when purchasing items; however, achieving value for money is not just about paying the lowest price. We must also consider the social, environmental and economic values of goods and services and, most importantly, the end-of-life issues that those materials present to our environment.

Government spending can and should encourage more suppliers to offer environmentally friendly products, making sustainable purchasing a standard practice. What excites me most is how such policies can foster innovation by providing businesses with the confidence to invest in new sustainable technologies and practices which can drive significant progress. One local company in my electorate, Roundwood Solutions, is doing just that.

Roundwood Solutions was started by Stephen and Tracy Telford almost 40 years ago. Their milling operation was based in Yahl, on the outskirts of Mount Gambier, and soon became the biggest supplier of green round posts in Australia. These green posts were then treated with creosote, a product that contains a mixture of chemicals, which can burn and stain the skin, and has a strong odour.

Eight years ago, Stephen started researching a safer and more environmentally friendly option that had an end-of-life solution, which creosote currently does not have. This marked the beginning of Roundwood Solutions progressing from a timber supply company to a treatment facility, focusing on saving the environment from the toxic effects of traditional post preservative treatment.

Roundwood Solutions have now developed a new wood-based product called Tanapost. This carbon neutral fencing product is environmentally friendly and EPA approved, replacing current toxic treated timber products that have no end-of-life solution. Tanapost is dry to touch, lighter in colour, significantly lower in smell and reduces the exposure of contractors to potentially carcinogenic compounds. Roundwood Solutions is the only company in Australia offering a cradle-to-grave scenario, recycling the product at the end of its life to extract energy and produce biochar, which serves as a carbon soak for the next thousand years. It really is the perfect example of circular economy.

Tanapost also offers significantly improved occupational health and safety benefits for end users. It is the only timber fencing product treated throughout its entire structure—and that includes the centre of the post—ensuring greater durability and longer life, features that end users have sought for years. This is exactly the type of innovation that can be created when businesses have the confidence to invest in sustainable practices. Roundwood Solutions are in the process of expanding their facility to run 24/7, meaning more jobs for our local economy.

With the move for governments and businesses to adopt more environmentally sustainable practices, Roundwood Solutions—a local, family-owned business—are best placed to continue to expand their company and become the largest producer of biochar in Australia. I would love to see an initiative similar to the Environmentally Sustainable Procurement Policy replicated by this state government. Let's position South Australia at the forefront of the circular economy so that South Australian businesses like Roundwood Solutions can be leaders on the world stage on how to be a successful, sustainable, environmentally friendly business.