Mr. Matthew Collins:

Incineration is widely accepted in Europe and the European Commission has said that incineration can have an appropriate role in the circular economy. It is one of the tools to achieving our goals in the circular economy. For example, the EU has recently adopted a new legally binding target, which will apply to Ireland, that only a maximum of 10% of municipal waste should go to landfill by 2030. We are continuing to reduce the amount of material that will be going to landfill. That is in line with the waste hierarchy which sets landfill as the least preferable option. Ahead of that there is recovery, where waste to energy facilities would sit. In that context there is a role for incineration in helping us achieve our targets and to move further up the waste hierarchy. My understanding is that the regional waste plans developed by the local authorities the Deputy referred to have used assumptions of achieving the new recycling targets for 2030. They have identified an additional need for further incineration and waste to energy facilities in Ireland for the full attainment of those targets in line with the circular economy package. On the one hand, we want to move to 10% landfill, a dramatic reduction in the material going to landfill and on the other, we want to achieve the 70% recycling target for packaging as well as the recycling targets for municipal landfill as well. Those assumptions are built into the regional waste plans. The rationale is that even meeting those goals, there is still an additional requirement for a thermal treatment in the Irish system.