Queensland Waste Data System—glossary

• Acid sulphate soil is soil and/or sediment that contains iron sulphides and that produces sulphuric acid when exposed to air. Drainage and excavation of acid sulphate soils remains a current issue for agriculture, urban development and infrastructure.
• Agricultural residuals are organic wastes arising from agricultural activity other than manure.
• Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. This category includes both friable asbestos, which is easily reduced to powder when crushed by hand (e.g., thermal lagging), and non-friable asbestos, which is firmly bound in the matrix of a material (e.g. asbestos cement). It does not include asbestos contaminated soil as this should be included in the contaminated soil amount.
• Ash is the powdery residue from the combustion of matter. Ash arising from the combustion of coal contains silica and lime and can be used in concrete production and waste treatment.
• Asphalt also known as bitumen is a sticky, black, highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum.
• Biosolids are organic solids created as a by-product of the biological wastewater treatment processes. They can be used can be used as nutrients and soil conditioning agents and as a source of energy. Sewage treatment plants are the main source of biosolids in Queensland.
• Biosolids (Dry Solids Equivalent). Dry solids equivalent is the total amount of biosolids excluding water. For example, 5 tonnes of biosolids with a dry solids content of 20% equates to 1 tonne of dry solids equivalent.
• Bottom ash is ash collected from the bottom of a boiler (or equivalent).
• Catalysts and other precious metals refer to Catalytic converters and other items containing precious metals such as platinum, palladium and rhodium etc.
• Cement Sheeting (Fibre cement) is fibre-reinforced cement products typically containing calcium silicate.
• Clean earth is earth that is not contaminated with waste or other hazardous material. For example, uncontaminated sand, soil, loam, clay, gravel, rock or any other natural substance found in the earth. This category does not include acid sulphide soil unless that soil has been treated and managed as stated in the guideline prescribed by regulation (Section 21 of Environmental Protection Act).
• Commercial and industrial waste is all waste produced by businesses and commerce. It includes waste from schools, restaurants, offices, retail and wholesale businesses, and manufacturing industries. Note: Green waste delivered by a commercial operator is C&I regardless of its origin. In the case of green waste, if it was generated by a household, it would still be considered as commercial and industrial if it is delivered by a commercial operator (i.e. landscaper or collected by a business for disposal).
• Concrete is a dried or solid composite material made up of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens over time
• Concrete washout includes both liquid and solid concrete washout.
  • Liquid concrete washout means water and slurry that is generated from the washing of concrete transport trucks, pumps, mixers and chutes, cleaning of agitator bowls and the hosing of yard paving at the site of production, and which is not reused in any concrete batching process.
  • Solid concrete washout means returned concrete which is washed out of concrete transport trucks and
    includes a mixture of fine aggregate (e.g. sand) and coarse aggregate (e.g. gravel and crushed stone) from
    the original concrete, and contains cement and other cementitious materials or chemicals that give the solid concrete washout resource significant residual alkalinity.
• Construction and demolition waste is non-putrescible waste arising from commercial construction or demolition activity. Non-putrescible waste is waste that does not readily decay under standard conditions. Construction and demolition waste includes materials such as plasterboard, brick, timber, concrete and steel. It does not include waste material delivered to council facilities by residents.
• Contaminated soil contains hazardous materials including asbestos, chemicals and any other materials classified as hazardous.
• Cotton gin trash is a waste by-product created in the cotton ginning process. It consists of leaf matter, stalks, dirt and cotton fibre.
• Disaster management waste is waste that has been generated by, or because of, a disaster.
• Disposal is the deposit of solid waste in a landfill or incinerator.
• Drilling mud is a fluid that is used to aid the drilling of bores into the earth. It may include water, clay, hydrocarbons or other chemicals.
• Energy recovery is the process of converting energy that is embodied in solid waste to a useable heat, electricity or fuel. It is equivalent to the amount of solid waste recovered less any residuals that have been disposed.
• Energy-from-waste facility is a facility that converts waste (including refuse-derived fuel or RDF) into economically viable energy. Energy includes heat, electricity, gas or liquid fuels. Conversion technologies can include, but are not limited to anaerobic digestion, combustion, pyrolysis, gasification, and plasma gasification.
• E-waste includes any electrical or electronic equipment that has now considered waste including, for example, components (glass, metals and plastics) and power supplies.
• Ferrous metal includes steel and pig iron (with a carbon content of a few percent) and alloys of iron with other metals (such as stainless steel).
• Fly ash is ash collected from exhaust gases produced by combustion processes (e.g., at coal fired power stations).
• Friable asbestos-containing material is material containing asbestos that is in powder form or that can be crumbled, pulverized or reduced to powder by hand when dry.
• FTE (Full time equivalent) is the hours worked by one employee on a full-time basis. The concept is used to convert the hours worked by several part-time employees into the hours worked by full-time employees. On an annual basis, an FTE is considered to be 2,080 hours, which is calculated as 8 hours per working day. FTE associated the waste and resource recovery industry would include any staff associated with waste management, resource recovery activities including incineration, organic processing, recycling, litter or illegal dumping collection or processing, levy and waste data reporting.
• Garden Organics (Green waste) includes grass clippings, tree, bush and shrub trimmings, branches and other similar material resulting from domestic or commercial gardening, landscaping or maintenance activities. For the collection of green waste data, this category includes material delivered directly to council landfills and transfer stations (for example, through the green top bins), but does not include garden waste mixed with other materials in household waste bins (that is, the red top bin).
• General waste is typically low hazard wastes that is not listed as regulated waste in schedule 9 of the Environmental Protection Regulation 2019.
• Grease trap waste and sludge Grease traps are plumbing devices that prevent grease and other solids from entering wastewater systems
• Hazardous waste includes, but is not limited to, the following materials: explosives; oxidising agents and organic peroxides; corrosive substances; flammable solids or substances liable to spontaneous combustion; coal tar or coal tar pitch waste; lead-acid or nickel-cadmium batteries; lead paint waste; containers, having previously contained a hazardous substance, from which hazard residue has not been removed.
• Headline waste streams (including municipal solid waste, commercial and industrial waste, and construction and demolition waste) form the basis of state and federal waste targets and reporting.
• High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE - code 2) is a type of recyclable plastic found in containers, bottles, toys and pipes.
• Incinerator is a facility that disposes of waste through burning in a controlled manner and that does not generate a useful end product nor recover energy.
• Landfill is a facility where waste is placed into or onto the ground, usually into an
  engineered and lined cell, where it is then compacted and covered for long-term containment. There are three broad types of landfill classifications:
  • Putrescible waste landfills - which accept all solid wastes, including inert wastes, and excluding industrial hazardous wastes. These are the dominant landfill types and are deployed to service most cities and towns.
  • Inert waste landfills - which accept all solid wastes, excluding industrial hazardous wastes, MSW, C&I and C&D biodegradables wastes, hazardous household wastes and electronic wastes (e-waste).
  • Hazardous waste landfills - which accept hazardous industrial and household wastes.
• Landfill gas emissions are a natural by-product of the decomposition of organic material in landfills.
• Lead acid batteries (intact) includes only intact lead acid batteries. Separated components of lead acid batteries should be reported under the relevant material types such as lead, plastics, and hazardous chemicals.
• Levyable waste includes all waste, other than exempt waste, that is delivered to a levyable waste disposal site. Some waste types are automatically exempt from the levy under section 26 of the Waste Reduction and Recycling Act 2011 (the Act) and under the Waste Reduction and Recycling Regulation 2011 (the Regulation). Other exemptions are available on approval by the department under section 28 of the Act.
• Levyable waste disposal site is a site that receives and disposes of waste and is located in the Levy Zone, or is a site located in the Non-Levy Zone that receives and disposes of a certain amount of waste from the Levy Zone. This includes all sites, whether under the ownership or control of the State, a local government or otherwise. The levyable part of the site refers to the part of a waste facility that excludes the resource recovery area.
• Liquid paperboard includes beverage cartons made from a material called liquid paperboard (LPB), which is constructed from paperboard with layers of plastic, and in the case of long-life products, a thin layer of aluminium foil.
• Liquid reprocessing facility/ies changes the physical and/or chemical structure of liquid wastes to add value to the processed material so that it can re-enter the economic cycle. Materials processed typically include waste oils and solvents.
• Litter and illegal dumping refers to all waste that has been incorrectly disposed of. Litter includes all scattered items of rubbish less than 200 litres (or equivalent volume). Common items of rubbish found in litter include cigarette butts, discarded food wrappers and beverage containers. Illegal dumping involves the unlawful disposal of greater than 200 litres (or equivalent volume) of waste.
• Low-density polyethylene (LDPE - code 4) is a type of recyclable plastic used in bags, wraps and squeezable containers.
• Mineral oil is petroleum-based oil.
• Mixed waste is made up of multiple material types.
• Monofills are landfills or long-term storage facilities that receive only one type of solid waste (such as tyres, sewage sludge or fly ash) or receive waste from a single source (such as a power station or a refinery).
• Municipal solid waste is a combination of domestic waste and other wastes arising from council activities (such as the management of parks and gardens, and the collection of litter and illegally dumped waste). If a householder generates waste such as bricks, concrete or other building type materials, the waste stream is still considered municipal solid waste as the source was household activities.
• Non-friable asbestos-containing material is any manufactured material or thing that contains asbestos as part of its design but does not contain friable asbestos-containing material.
• Non-packaging glass is all non-container glass waste, including screens, windows, safety glass and mirrors.
• Non-packaging plastic is plastic products including plastic pipes, eating utensils, toys but excluding containers and plastic wrapping.
• Non-putrescible waste means not susceptible to rapid decomposition. Non-putrescible waste consisting of both combustible and non-combustible wastes, such as paper, wrappings, cigarettes, cardboard, tin cans, yard clippings, leaves, wood, glass, bedding, crockery, and similar materials.
• Non-regulated mill tailings are left over materials from the milling of mineral ores.
• Organic material is all animal and plant matter, including, but not limited to, dead animals, animal remains, animal excreta, bark, lawn clippings, leaves, mulch, pruning waste, sawdust, shavings, woodchip and other waste from forest products, and organic waste.
• Organic processing involves the recovery of putrescible wastes through activities such as mulching, composting or vermiculture etc.
• Organic waste includes substances used for manufacturing fertiliser for agricultural, horticultural or garden use, animal manure, biosolids, cardboard and paper waste, fish processing waste, food and food processing waste, grease trap waste, green waste, poultry processing waste, waste generated from an abattoir. Organic waste does not include clinical or related waste, contaminated soil, quarantine waste, synthetic substances, other than those used for manufacturing fertiliser for agricultural or garden use.
• Organics processing facility/ies change the physical and/or chemical structure of organic materials, to add value to the material so that it can re-enter the economic cycle. Outputs are most commonly soil improver and mulch products, or in the case of digestion facilities, energy may also be produced. Organics processing facilities can typically process a range of organic wastes including food waste, green waste and timber as well as agricultural and forestry residues.
• Other plastics (OTHER - code 7) is a type of recyclable plastic used in nylon and polycarbonate materials.
• Packaging glass is all glass container waste including glass bottles and jars.
• Packaging material includes paper, cardboard, glass, plastic, aluminium and steel containers.
• Packaging plastics are plastic containers and wrapping including soft plastic wrapping. Also includes plastic bottles.
• Paper and packaging materials include paper, cardboard, glass or plastic materials used to wrap or protect goods. This also includes aluminium containers and steel containers.
• Photovoltaic Materials (used solar panels) are typically constructed with a metal frame, a glass casing sheet, crystalline cells (e.g. silicon) and wiring.
• Plasterboard Paper refers to covered sheets of plaster (gypsum - calcium sulphate).
• Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET - code 1) is a type of recyclable plastic used to create food, beverage and chemical containers.
• Polypropylene (PP - code 5) is a type of recyclable plastic used to create textiles and food containers.
• Polystyrene (PS - code 6) is a type of recyclable plastic used to create disposable cups and crockery, packing foam.
• Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC - code 3) is a type of recyclable plastic used to create pipes, cable insulation, fascia boards, flooring.
• Product stewardship scheme is a scheme in which persons who are involved in the life cycle of a product share responsibility for the management and impact of the product throughout its life cycle, including end-of-use management. The scheme seeks to redress the adverse impacts of a product
• Putrescible wastes are solid wastes that contain organic matter capable of being decomposed by microorganisms.
• Recovered material is waste that has been diverted from landfill. It includes material that has been recycled, reprocessed or stockpiled for future use.
• Recovery facilities receive, separate and prepare recyclable materials for distribution. Materials are sorted through mechanical and manual processes, then consolidated (compacted and baled) and sent to reprocessing facilities. Residual materials are sent to landfill or for energy recovery.
• Recycling is an activity in which solid wastes are collected, sorted, processed (including through composting), and converted into raw materials to be used in the production of new products. It is the amount of solid waste remaining after any residuals are disposed of.
• Recycling residuals are unrecoverable materials generated during a recycling process.
• Red mud is a caustic by-product of alumina production.
• Regulated waste Schedule 9 of the Environmental Protection Regulation 2019 lists all regulated wastes. It includes all commercial and/or industrial waste (whether or not it has been immobilised or treated) and is of a type, or contains a constituent of a type, mentioned in schedule 9 part 1 of the Environmental Protection Regulation.
• Reprocessing is the activity of recovering materials from a waste stream for use as a substitute for raw materials. For example, green waste and biosolids can be mulched or composted.
• Resource recovery, for data collation purposes, is the sum of materials sent to recycling and/or energy recovery less any contaminants and residual wastes sent to disposal.
• Resource recovery area refers to the area within a waste disposal site, declared under the Waste Reduction and Recycling Act (2011), where recycling activities are conducted.
• Resource recovery centre is a facility that receives reusable and recyclable waste materials.
• Rubble (Aggregate) consists of coarse particulate rock-like material ranging in size from <0.1mm to >50mm and may include gravel, crushed rock, sand, recycled concrete, slag and synthetic aggregate.
• Sawdust (Sawmill residuals) are residue wastes arising from sawmills.
• Scrap metal is discarded metal sent to disposal or recovery.
• Segregated green waste refers to separated vegetation (including grass clippings, tree branches, shrub trimmings) from gardening, landscaping or maintenance activities. It excludes vegetation in comingled waste such as waste from red bin lid collections.
• Tip shops refer to sales outlets at waste facilities for items that have been salvaged prior to being disposed in landfill.
• Trackable waste includes environmentally damaging materials listed in Schedule 11 of the Environmental Protection Regulation 2019. Many, but not all trackable wastes are regulated, and similarly, many but not all regulated wastes are trackable.
• Transfer station is a facility that allows the drop off and consolidation of waste and a wide range of recyclable materials. Most are council-owned but some are privately owned servicing commercial customers. A transfer station can be combined with a resource recovery centre and other facilities or a landfill site.
• Tyres include all waste tyres and parts of tyres, including tyre treads, tyre sidewalls and chipped tyres. This includes anything that is or was a tyre or part of a tyre that has not been changed into something altogether different (e.g. hydrocarbons).
• Waste includes anything other than a resource approved under Chapter 8 of the Waste Reduction and Recycling Act 2011 that is:
  • left over, or an unwanted by-product, from an industrial, commercial, domestic or other activity; or
  • surplus to the industrial, commercial, domestic or other activity generating the waste.

Waste can be a gas, liquid, solid or energy, or a combination of any of them. Something can be waste whether or not it is of value.

• Waste Chemicals are discarded chemical components sent to disposal or for recovery.
• Waste Disposal Site is a waste facility that is required to hold an environmental authority (EA) for the disposal of waste and where landfilling of any waste occurs at the facility.
• Waste Handler(s) include waste generators, transporters and receivers of regulated or trackable wastes that have waste tracking responsibilities. Collectively they are referred to as waste handlers.
• Waste Receiver is any facility that receives trackable waste for recycling, treatment, storage or disposal. Sometimes interstate facilities will be used that are licensed by the relevant State or Territory authorities.
• Waste Transporter is any person or organisation that transports waste, including trackable waste, from its place of production or storage to another location. Transportation includes, but is not limited to, truck, tanker, trailer and semitrailer, train, boat or aircraft.