Learn how Drummuster provides an environmentally friendly way of disposing of empty farming chemical containers.
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00:00PACT has been a proud participant in the Drum Master Stewardship Program for approximately
00:1118 years starting back in 2006. Recycling drum master material is challenging simply
00:16because these cubes sit out in the environment and are exposed to many forms of contamination.
00:21Challenges before the world now are significant and everybody is focused on more sustainability,
00:26on cyclical economy, on full life cycle management of our products.
00:33My role as a member of the Dookie Lions Club is to coordinate the drum master program.
00:38We operate drum master between when the farmers have finished their sowing of the crops and
00:44before the harvest.
00:45Majority of our chemicals come in 20 litre plastic drums. Before drum master, plastic
00:51drums would have gone to landfill and in my concern a complete waste.
00:55A lot of farmers had large numbers of chemical drums on their properties. There was a dilemma
01:00for a lot of farmers, they didn't know what to do with them. Some of them were reluctant
01:04to burn them, some of them were reluctant to bury them. Once the drum master program
01:09was explained to them, they were more than happy to have an outlet for the drums.
01:14The recycling process for the drum master material is that PACT collects the cubes from
01:26the drum master compounds through rural Australia with our drum master truck.
01:30When they have a collection day, we just take them down and drop them off.
01:34It's my job then to inform the recycling people that we're ready to have drums collected,
01:40we're full up.
01:41The drums are compacted and taken back to our PACT recycling processes in Brisbane,
01:44Sydney and Melbourne.
01:52Once the baled cubes arrive at the recycling facilities, they are shredded, washed, extruded
01:58and palletised ready for remanufacture.
02:00When we get into a facility such as here, that we've invested into multi-layer extruder
02:05blow moulding equipment which allows us to encapsulate the recycled content in between
02:10two virgin layers.
02:12We undertake dangerous goods testing which includes stack testing and drop testing at
02:17negative 18 degrees C to meet the UN regulations.
02:21This creates a unique product that will meet the agricultural market through the drum the
02:26drum program.
02:27It has diverted hundreds of thousands of tonnes of plastic that would otherwise be in landfill
02:32going back into recycling, producing other products, park benches, roadside safety and
02:37that's why the partnership between Agsafe, Crop Life and PACT Group is now seeing this
02:41very exciting next stage of this program.
02:50Drum Master money has been very, very helpful.
02:53We've not only funded but we've also built a fitness station, doing a whole lot of signage
02:57along our Dookie Rail Trail, a hydration station, the barbecue in the playground up there we
03:02also built.
03:03The money that we get we plough back into our own community.
03:13Drum Master has been a phenomenal success, not just in Australia but it's internationally
03:18recognised.
03:19There's a real need for organisations like PACT and other processes to have the support
03:25from government so that they can build this next green economy that will be so important
03:31to the future.
03:32This is a great example of leading the circular economy, partnering with Crop Life through
03:36the Drum Master program and enabling us to develop a solution for the agricultural sector.
03:42We make it, we take it, we flake it and now we remake it.
03:46Now that is circular.