Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The first issue is in what way they are in compliance. They are in compliance with the permits that were issued to them as waste collectors. In other words, they are in compliance with environmental law and the terms and conditions that were imposed by the local authorities. There may be unsightly piles of plastic. However, the question is about whether they are in compliance within the context of what they are legally permitted to do.

The second question was about the costs. This is a scheme in which the producers have to pay. It involves the producer-pays principle. It is similar to other schemes, such as Repak or the deposit return scheme, where the people who are producing the materials have to put money into the system to pay towards the cost of collecting those materials, which may end up as pollution in the environment.

In the case of this scheme, as I understand it, every time the producers manufacture a silage bag or some farm plastic, they have to put money into a bank account. They then sell the product on to the farmers. However, the cost of the product is, of course, elevated because they are passing on the costs they had to pay in order to produce the goods. The farmers then bring back the plastic, typically to a designated yard or to a mart and at that time, they have to pay a fee for the collection of the product. Therefore, we have the producers paying when they put it in, but the costs are being passed on to the farmers who are the users. That is the spread and that is how the scheme is funded.