Securing the Outstanding Achievement in Packaging Stewardship prize at the 2016 Australian Packaging Covenant Awards, along with winning the Shipping and Transport category, was a reflection of the effort Australia Post has dedicated to its sustainability goals. It also has introduced a free mailing satchel collection program with Terracycle, providing a recycling solution for a product that cannot be dealt with by most councils’ kerbside collection services. “They are fantastic at their job, at keeping letters and parcels dry, clean, safe and secure,” says Andrew. “We’re looking for the most sustainable solution for the material, but while we’re doing that, we’ve put in place a free recycling program.” Australia Post customers simply register on the Terracycle website and once they have collected enough prepaid standard and padded mailing satchels, they can request a pre-paid shipping label. It also provides the returns process for the MobileMuster program through its network. It has provided 245,000 satchels to divert more than 62.6 tonnes of mobile phones and accessories from landfill since 2008. This postal return approach has been refined for a partnership with Nespresso, launched this past September, which is a particular source of pride for Andrew. Australia Post started conversations with Nespresso about two years ago about its challenge with its aluminium coffee capsules. They are recyclable but not through kerbside recycling bins as they retain coffee grounds. It needed an easy, convenient system for customers to collect those capsules and return to its recycling facility in NSW. It also needed to build on the collection program through 18 Nespresso shops and 300 florists, which it introduced in 2010. In an industry first, Australia Post designed a special mailing satchel for consumers to return their used Nespresso coffee capsules by post. This has enabled Nespresso customers across the country to recycle their used coffee capsules, as they return them by posting the satchel at any of Australia Post’s posting boxes or post offices, almost 20,000 lodgement points. Andrew cites the work Australia Post has done with Terracycle around cigarette butt recycling as a prime example. “We connected Terracycle with Clean Up Australia and equipped the huge number of volunteers on Clean Up Australia Day with cigarette butt recycling satchels as part of their kits,” he says. Waste Management Review_DecJan