Tamworth Regional Organics Facility

Tamworth Regional Organics Facility is a waste diversion project located at the Forest Road Waste Management Centre, approximately 5km east of Tamworth in New South Wales. Registered in April 2021, the project is an initiative by the Tamworth Regional Council to manage organic waste more sustainably. While the project is registered at the Council's existing waste depot coordinates, it is intrinsically linked to the development of a new, dedicated Organics Recycling Facility (ORF) at Gidley, 15km northwest of the city, which is designed to process diverted waste using advanced technology.

The project operates under the Source Separated Organic Waste methodology. This method involves separating organic material, such as food scraps, garden waste, and commercial organic waste, at the point of generation (homes and businesses) rather than sending it to a general landfill. By diverting this waste, the project prevents the anaerobic decomposition that generates methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Instead, the collected material is transferred to a specialized facility for treatment, specifically utilizing enclosed tunnel composting technology to produce high-quality soil conditioners.

The Tamworth region is characterized by a sub-humid climate with a summer-dominant rainfall averaging around 670mm annually. The surrounding landscape supports extensive agricultural land use, including grazing, cropping, and poultry farming. The soils in the area are typically fertile, consisting of red-brown earths on slopes and heavy black clays (vertosols) on the river plains.

A notable feature of this project is its capacity to handle "Category 3" organic waste, which includes meat, fish, and fatty sludges often generated by the local abattoir and food processing industries. The associated facility at Gidley, scheduled for full operation around 2027, is designed to process up to 35,000 tonnes of waste per annum initially, with potential expansion to 50,000 tonnes. This capability positions it as a significant regional hub for closing the loop on agricultural and municipal waste.