Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

asked the Minister representing the Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, in writing, on 8 September 2011:

(1) Given that the Oil Product Stewardship Scheme has seen an increase in the volume of recycled oil in category 1 in the past few years, of this amount, how much is being recycled as:

  (a)   hydraulic oil;

  (b)   lubricant oil; or

  (c)   transformer oil.

(2) Does the Government have any plans to increase incentives for the types of oil not currently being recycled in category 1; if not, are there any other moves to increase the volume of the oils not being recycled in large volume in this category.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities has provided the following answer to the honourable senator's question:

(1) Transformer oil has different characteristics to hydraulic and lubricant oils so used transformer oil tends to be re-refined separately from those oils. In 2009–10 about 4.3 million litres of Category 1 re-refined oil was transformer oil and the remaining 39.8 million litres was hydraulic or lubricant oil.

Hydraulic and lubricant oils are similar and these used oils tend to be re-refined together to produce re-refined base oil, from which either hydraulic or lubricant oil can then be made. Data on the proportion of hydraulic versus lubricant oil produced from re-refined base oil is not available.

(2) No to both parts of the question.