Garage Sale Trail

The Hon. G.A. KANDELAARS (16:17): My question is to the Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation. Will the minister inform the chamber about the recent Garage Sale Trail and how this initiative is assisting people in changing their attitudes to waste?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation) (16:17): I thank the honourable member for his most important question and I look forward to responding. South Australia has developed a nation-leading reputation, as you know, in waste management and recycling. Each year, the state government through Zero Waste SA commissions a review of recycling activities in our state. The 2012-13 study was undertaken by Rawtec Pty Ltd and showed that, in the 2012-13 financial year, South Australians diverted 77.4 per cent of all generated waste from landfill.

Resources recovery has continued to grow over the years, I am advised. Since 2003-04, resources recovery has nearly doubled, from 2 million tonnes to nearly 4 million tonnes per year. The benefits of this are quite enormous. From an environmental perspective alone, resources recovery in 2012-13 resulted in an estimated saving in greenhouse gas emissions of 1.23 tonnes of CO₂, and about 13,160 megalitres of water (very precise) were saved, equating to 5,260 Olympic-sized swimming pools. From an economic perspective, the total direct market value of recovered materials for South Australia in 2013-14 was estimated to be $299 million.

The waste industry has become one of our state's fastest growing industries. Today, it is worth $1 billion a year and directly contributes $500 million to our gross state product. The industry also employs around 4,800 people directly and indirectly, I am advised. These results are thanks to a range of innovative programs and incentives that have led to the willing participation of the wider community.

One such initiative is the Garage Sale Trail, which was held on 25 October in 10 local council areas across the city. The Garage Sale Trail is a not-for-profit community enterprise that aims to promote the reuse and reduction of waste to landfill. It promotes awareness about illegal dumping, unites communities and stimulates local economies. Since the first Garage Sale Trail took place in Bondi in May 2010 it has grown from strength to strength, with around 350,000 people taking part in the initiative this year across the nation.

The state government was pleased to support the event through Zero Waste SA. Over 250 garage sales, I understand, were registered in South Australia for the event that offered South Australians a fun and creative way of reducing the amount of reusable materials put out for council collection or disposed of at council drop-off centres. This of course reduces the amount of waste going to landfill. The event also helps make us all aware of our consumption habits.

The 2014 Garage Sale Trail received extensive coverage and was widely promoted through a partnership with ABC 891 radio and the Messenger Press contributing to its success. The philosophy behind the Garage Sale Trail promotes the idea of reuse that is particularly important today where people are quick to both consume and throw things away. It also taps into the emerging trend of 'upcycling' where people convert waste materials or useless products into new products or art works.

While this may seem quite normal to many of us who belong to a slightly older generation, who would have known this practice as being necessary, it is a very welcome trend in today's consumer-driven society—and particularly with hipsters like the Hon. Gerry Kandelaars. In the spirit of the South Australian Garage Sale Trail, I personally donated a very important piece of vintage clothing from my perspective—

The Hon. J.M.A. Lensink: Leather pants?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: Close. The Hon. Michelle Lensink is very close in her estimation. In fact, it was a purple leather bomber jacket which I bought I believe in—

The Hon. J.M.A. Lensink: 1984.

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: Indeed! The Hon. Michelle Lensink is spot on. It is an item of clothing which relates back to my Mars Bar days. Indeed, I was particularly fond of wearing it, I remember, and always found myself being particularly lucky when I had that piece of clothing on, in relation to garnering dance partners and not dancing alone.

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: Bless. I used to be. I hasten to add I haven't fitted into that purple bomber jacket for about 35 years—no, not quite that much, but for many years indeed. If we are to continue to improve our fantastic track record in resource recovery, and continue to grow our waste industry, participation in events such as the Garage Sale Trail will be important to continue educating the public and capturing people's imaginations, as my purple bomber jacket undoubtedly has done.

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the organisers of the Garage Sale Trail, Mr Andrew Valder and Mr Darryl Nichols, for a very successful initiative. I would also like to commend the South Australian councils who put their hand up to participate in the 2014 event and all the people who took part, helping the environment and having a bit of fun.