Natural Recovery Systems Composting Project

Natural Recovery Systems Composting Project is an Alternative Waste Treatment project located in the southeastern industrial suburbs of Melbourne, approximately 25km southeast of the Melbourne CBD in Victoria. It was registered in April 2013 and operates within an industrial facility footprint rather than a traditional expansive agricultural project area.

Alternative Waste Treatment (AWT) projects under the 2015 methodology involve diverting mixed solid waste away from landfills and processing it in specialised facilities. By redirecting this waste, these projects prevent the anaerobic decomposition of organics in landfills, which would otherwise release potent methane gas emissions. This specific project uses an enclosed composting technology to process the diverted solid waste, ultimately producing compost and a combustible fuel substitute.

The broader southeast Melbourne area is heavily urbanised and characterised by large-scale commercial and industrial operations. The region experiences a temperate climate with moderate rainfall, and local natural soils are typically composed of clay and sandy loams, though land use in this immediate corridor is almost entirely industrial and structural rather than agricultural.

This project transitioned from an earlier revoked Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI) legacy method. It contributed to a large Carbon Abatement Contract (CAC254087) held by proponent Veolia Environmental Services. This contract pooled abatement from several of Veolia's waste and landfill gas sites and was successfully completed in August 2022 after delivering over 280,000 tonnes of contracted abatement. In an excellent demonstration of circular economy principles, compost generated by Veolia's Natural Recovery Systems has been used in a partnership with the charity Food for Change, helping to nourish a 140-tree fruit orchard planted on the Mornington Peninsula to provide meals for disadvantaged communities.