• February 7, 2025
• By JEP Team
• Articles, News

Worm Tech Pty Ltd (Worm Tech) operates one of the largest composting facilities in Australia, and has done so successfully for the past ten years. The company specialises in the conversion of valuable organic resources into high grade biological fertilisers.

Their existing facility, located in Carrathool in south-west NSW has a capacity to process 50,000 tonnes of organic waste per annum. Composting operations involve the conversion of a variety of organics such as animal waste, cardboard, garden organics, food organics, manure and cotton trash into high quality compost and liquid fertilisers for agricultural, horticultural and domestic markets across the country. The facility was approved in 2016 and is licenced by the NSW Environment Protection Authority (NSW EPA).

To help the company increase its capacity to provide organic waste recycling services to councils and commercial businesses, the JEP Environment & Planning team were engaged to prepare a planning application to seek approval for increasing their processing capacity from 50,000 tonnes per annum to 99,000 tonnes per annum.

Our team led the design and impact assessments for several alterations and additions to the facility to increase the processing capacity and meet all planning and regulatory requirements under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 and other statutory legislation. 

The proposal involved: an increase in the operating area and facility; a concrete washdown for trucks; a bunded sterilisation wheel wash; compaction of the clay composting pad; improvements to the sites’ drainage system; construction of a 28 megalitre leachate storage pond; a new weighbridge; a new site entrance from Conargo Rd; a bridge over a drainage channel within the site; new offices; landscaping; a new groundwater bore; formalised car parking area; a new onsite sewage management system and a 100 kilowatt on-ground solar energy array to supply the site with renewable electricity for operations.

As part of the application, Worm Tech sought planning consent for increasing their ability to receive and process food and garden organics (FOGO) from a combined total of 22,000 tonnes under the original approval to 70,000 tonnes per annum. The FOGO capacity increase sought in the planning application was driven by the strong demand for FOGO processing by councils in NSW and Victoria.

The JEP Environment & Planning team led the engagement process with Murrumbidgee Shire Council and NSW EPA. In November 2023, the development application received approval from Murrumbidgee Shire Council under DA24-2023.

This significant development approval will help Worm Tech to better service the organic waste recycling needs of many councils and businesses in NSW. The approval adds significant FOGO processing capacity to NSW, which is critically needed to help the NSW Government’s proposed 80% resource recovery rate by 2030. The approval will also help NSW councils who are now required under law in NSW to provide FOGO collection and recycling services by 2030.

If you are interested in Worm Tech’s organic waste recycling services or would like to purchase liquid fertilises, composts or other biological liquids for farming applications, please contact Worm Tech at sales@wormtech.com.au or 1300 803 000 or visit them at https://wormtech.com.au/.

To see how we can assist in securing planning approval for your recycling facility or industrial development, please contact us on (02) 8056 1849 or email us at admin@jacksonenvironment.com.au. More info at https://www.jacksonenvironment.com.au.