3R Group

“3R GROUP, the Hawke’s Bay company behind programmes such as PaintWise, a nationwide paint-recycling programme, and Agrecovery, New Zealand’s rural plastics recycling programme, is bucking the global recession.

The company employs 15 people full-time and another six people part-time. ‘‘Environmental concerns are leading many industries to think about and plan for their products’ disposal and 3R, as a recycler and developer of product stewardship programmes, is well positioned to offer responsible alternatives to
dumping.’’

3R started work on two new stewardship programmes in July alone: it rolled out a nationwide chemical recovery programme as well as starting a pilot programme called Gardenwise that is targeting potting plant containers, mulch bags and other plastic waste generated by gardeners and nurseries. The chemical recovery programme is an extension of Agrecovery while the Gardenwise initiative is in partnership with the Nursery and Garden Industry Association.

“3R’s success shows that Hawke’s Bay companies can prosper even in tough times,’’ said Ian Hunter of the University of Auckland Business School. ‘‘Not only has 3R successfully targeted the growing market for recovery programmes, but it’s also constantly innovating, finding new ways and new waste to recycle. We hope to help other companies learn from its example.’’

Companies’ growing attention to how their products are disposed of is part of a larger, global movement, Mr Norton says. Along with Mr Emerson and Robert Brodnax, a local government expert, Mr Norton founded the Product Stewardship Foundation in 2008 to encourage understanding of the approach here.

Increasingly, manufacturers worldwide are adopting the idea or being forced by Governments to do so — of extended producer responsibility, developing plans for their products’ disposal at the end of their useful life and incorporating the cost into prices.

Through the Agrecovery Foundation’s rural recycling programme, 3R already recovers nearly a fifth of the agrichemical containers put into the market place by the brand owners that support the programme. It is estimated that more than 5 million plastic containers in which agrichemicals, animal health products and liquid fertilisers are stored are disposed of each year.

In 2005, 3R joined with agrichemical companies and the Government to form the foundation and address the problem. 3R designed the programme, including the world’s first mobile shredder truck. Thirty-nine companies now voluntarily collect at a level of 13 cents a litre and pass it on to the foundation, which contracts 3R to collect and shred the containers and deliver them to Astron Plastics. The Auckland-based company reprocesses the material.

Also under the Agrecovery banner, 3R in March began collecting the plastic film that farmers use to wrap and store animal feed. Farmers use an estimated 4000 tons of silage wrap a year and have had to either burn or dump it. They can now buy recycling bags, from retailers or from Agrecovery, into which they can stuff the film. 3R then collects the bags and it is investigating new technology to remove dirt and water so the film can be reprocessed in New Zealand.

3R is experimenting with other plastic products that are difficult to recycle, such as the ground film that melon and strawberry growers use to hold down weeds. The company may also recycle vine netting that grape growers use to protect their crops from birds and the large, 200 to 1000 litre drums that farmers use.

‘‘There’s a lot of growth potential in developing take-back programmes for these persistent plastic waste streams in agriculture,’’ Mr Norton said. 3R is also targeting the plastic waste generated by the garden industry with its Gardenwise programme. The company has been working on a trial with the New Zealand Nursery and Garden Industry Association. The goal is to launch a nationwide recovery programme next year for items such as planter pots, mulch bags, seedling trays and other plastic films used by commercial growers.

‘‘A single solution adopted across the country would make it easy for all nurseries and consumers to recycle and to keep the pots, bags and trays out of the landfills,’’ Mr Emerson said. The company is working to broaden the reach of PaintWise, the nationwide paint recycling programme that it operates with Resene Paints, to include other manufacturers and retailers. Under the award-winning programme, consumers can return used paint to Resene outlets and other collection points.

3R ensures all packaging is recycled. It also mixes most of the water-based paints which Resene then gives to community groups to cover graffiti. Resene funds the programme through a direct contribution and a 15-cent levy on each litre of retail paint sold. 3R is working to establish a similar programme in Australia and experimenting with different uses for the paint it collects, including adding crushed glass.

The company has already formed a partnership with Resene, Firth Industries, Fletcher Building and Golden Bay Cement to make PaintCrete, a mix of paint and concrete. The waste paint makes the concrete more fluid so it’s easier to pump. The mixture also shrinks less while hardening and bonds better. ‘‘Producers of products have a long-term responsibility,’’ Mr Norton said. ‘‘That doesn’t stop when they sell their products.’’