Wine Australia: Open call -Circular solutions for end-of-life management of CCA-treated timber
Opportunity for
- Australian and International SMEs and Universities that can research, innovate and commercialise circular solutions for en-of-life management of CCA-treated timber.
Opportunity description
Industry challenge
Treated timber has been used in Australia for approximately 50 years, with the dominant preservative used being a formulation of copper, chromium and arsenic known as CCA. CCA-treated timber is used in the utilities, horticulture and agricultural industries as round posts, for landscaping (fencing, sleepers) and in the construction industry for framing. It is typically in-situ for approximately 30-40 years depending on its application. Approximately 2.1 million m3 of treated timber enters the Australian market each year, 0.9 million m3 of which is CCA treated timber.
A large volume of CCA-treated timber will become waste in the coming years, exacerbated in the very short term by the downturn in the Australian wine industry and potential removal of large areas of vineyards where posts are used to support the vines. An immediate solution is required to manage the likely spike of waste CCA treated timber, in addition to the 50 years of remnant legacy material.
CCA treated timber when disposed of incorrectly can have potentially significant environmental and human health implications. Disposal of CCA treated timber to licenced landfill is currently the only legal pathway for its end-of-life management but is rarely used by the agricultural sector because of the cost and logistics involved. For example, the landfill gate fee to dispose of one hectare of vineyard posts may represent 10% of the land value of a small property in the Riverland of South Australia. Consequently, users of CCA treated timber, particularly vineyard owners, have been stockpiling used CCA treated posts on their properties, with many at capacity. It is estimated that 125,000 tonnes of discarded CCA-treated posts are stockpiled on vineyards across Australia, with a minimum of 12,500 tonnes added to this annually due to mechanical breakage.
This opportunity seeks innovative technologies, products, processes, or business models that can safely repurpose, recycle, recover, or otherwise divert CCA-treated vineyard posts from landfill. We are particularly interested in solutions that can demonstrate economic viability, environmental benefits, regulatory compliance, and potential for adoption across Australia's winegrape producing regions.
Current opportunity
Wine Australia is seeking applications from SMEs, technology providers, researchers, innovators, circular economy businesses, and commercial partners with solutions for managing end-of-life CCA-treated vineyard posts.
Applicants are invited to propose technologies and products that can demonstrate a technical solution at a pre-commercial or lab scale along with a pathway toward commercial deployment and industry adoption. Solutions may include treatment technologies, recycling approaches, material recovery systems, product redevelopment opportunities, or alternative value-adding uses for recovered timber and associated materials.
Successful applicants will gain access to industry expertise, grower networks, and the opportunity to collaborate with Australia's grape and wine sector to validate and scale their solution. This challenge provides a unique opportunity to engage with a large and well-defined market, address a pressing sustainability challenge, and demonstrate impact within an industry actively seeking practical circular economy solutions.
By partnering with Wine Australia and industry stakeholders, innovators can accelerate market entry, validate their technology under real-world conditions, and contribute to a more sustainable future for Australian viticulture.
Solution providers will receive up to a maximum of A$300,000 each over the course of the program.
'Enquire now' through growAG to receive the application documents.
Applications close Thursday 30th July at 5pm ACST.
Opportunity background
Wine Australia is the national research, development, and marketing body for Australia's grape and wine sector. Through strategic investment and industry partnerships, Wine Australia supports innovation that improves vineyard productivity, sustainability, profitability, and resilience.
As part of its sustainability and circular economy priorities, Wine Australia is investigating solutions for the growing challenge of managing end-of-life CCA-treated vineyard posts. Industry feedback has identified disposal of treated timber posts as a significant and increasing issue, creating environmental, operational, and cost pressures for growers.
This opportunity aims to connect the wine sector with organisations capable of delivering innovative and commercially viable solutions. We are particularly interested in technologies that can safely recover value from retired vineyard posts, reduce landfill disposal, support regulatory compliance, and create new economic opportunities from existing waste streams.
The distinguishing feature of this opportunity is the scale of the challenge and the potential market available. With millions of vineyard posts and treated timber utility (electricity) poles reaching end-of-life over coming decades, successful solutions have the potential to deliver significant environmental benefits while creating sustainable commercial outcomes for both industry and solution providers.
In the proposal, applicants must provide details of the solution to be evaluated in the requested format. Applicants are required to provide a detailed breakdown of how the funding allocation will be used, provide evidence-based assessment of its current technical and commercial readiness levels and the anticipated ratings to be achieved by the end of the project. Applicants must also describe the proposed stages of development, innovation and commercialisation to be undertaken during the project, including the key milestones, decision points and progression criteria that will demonstrate advancement towards project outcomes and market adoption.