Wine Australia is urging growers and vineyard managers to continue to safely store unwanted CCA-treated timber trellis posts as the sector seeks solutions for their sustainable disposal.
A recent survey of vineyard owners, funded by Wine Australia, revealed there was an estimated 89 million timber posts installed in vineyards across Australia to trellis vines, of which 78% are treated with CCA — a timber preservative containing copper, chromium and arsenic that protects it from fungal and insect attack.
Between 1.3-3.3 million CCA posts (12,000-30,000 tonnes) need to be replaced annually due to breakage. Posts also enter the waste stream when vineyards are redeveloped or permanently removed.
Due to the potential for CCA to impact the environment and human health, the disposal of CCA-treated posts poses a challenge.
There is currently no at-scale proven recycling solution for them in Australia or overseas. Disposing of CCA-treated posts to licenced landfill is currently the only legal pathway for their end-of-life management in Australia, but the cost and logistics of doing this means it is not often used.
"It's crucial that vineyard owners and operators safely stockpile their posts or send them to an appropriate landfill until a sustainable, scalable solution is found that minimises risk to properties, businesses, communities and the environment," said Alex Sas, Senior Research & Innovation Program Manager at Wine Australia.
Paul Derrico, Chief Executive Officer of Murray Valley Winegrowers, said finding a solution to dispose of CCA posts is a critical challenge for winegrape growers in the region.
"The issue is also a significant one for the table grape and dried fruit growers in our region," Derrico said.
"While we realise there is no quick fix, we hope a solution can be found in the very near future and we welcome Wine Australia's endeavours in this space.
"In the meantime, we implore all growers in our region to store posts in a suitable location and in neat bundles on their properties so that when a solution is found, or they can be repurposed for something like fence posts, they are easily accessible and manageable," he said.
The Wine Australia website details how posts should be stockpiled safely and explains how Wine Australia is working with various partners to create alternative, low-emissions uses for end-of-life CCA posts.
These partners include Forest & Wood Products Australia, the Australian Forest Products Association, suppliers of timber preservatives, South Australian Wine Industry Association, South Australian Department of Primary Industries and Regions and the Treated Timber Product Stewardship Working Group, which includes representatives with expertise in design, manufacturing, use and disposal of treated timbers, as well as state governments and the waste and recycling sectors.
One of the partners in the Timber Circularity Project, which is being undertaken by the National Centre for Timber Durability and Design Life, University of the Sunshine Coast, is Forest & Wood Products Australia (FWPA).
"Acknowledging the shared challenges across our industries, FWPA is pleased to be collaborating with Wine Australia on this important research as a supporter of the Timber Circularity Project," said Dr Chris Lafferty, Head of Research, Development & Extension at FWPA.
"A primary goal of this project is to dispel the misconception that all timber treatments are identical, which often hinders the potential for beneficial reuse of timber products within a circular economy. The timber industry has access to a range of preservative treatment and wood modification systems depending on the product to be used, desired service life and its local environment.
"This project will demonstrate a range of options that are available to support extended use and application of timber products within the circular economy."
