The clarification came following pressure from Jo Clay, The ACT Green’s deputy leader. The ruling Labor administration confirmed there’s no ‘sunset clause’ on the original 2020-2025 policy. This suggests a law change would be needed for it to be reversed. The policy was established after two incinerator proposals were abandoned in the face of public opposition.

Clay was concerned that the prohibition on thermal treatment of waste, except medical waste, might time out. ACT communities are also worried about recent proposals for a waste-to-energy incinerator in neighbouring New South Wales.

Valerie Morse leads Zero Waste Aotearoa’s Regeneration Not Incineration campaign. She says: “”The moratorium in Canberra is the result of tremendous community work and opposition. It’s great that a moratorium is in place, and much more work is ongoing across Australia to stop new incinerators.

“That’s what we see every time there’s an incinerator proposal in a community: people do not want them. Instead of wasting our time fighting old, polluting technologies, we want to focus on solutions to our waste that reduce the harm done rather than adding to it. We want a clear moratorium on these wasteful and polluting facilities in Aotearoa.”