John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

The facility in question is being advanced by Dublin City Council, acting on behalf of the four Dublin local authorities in the context of their statutory regional waste management plan, by way of a public private partnership, PPP. The State is not a party to this PPP agreement and has undertaken no financial or other liability in respect of this project.

As I previously indicated, it is my understanding that the quantities of residual waste currently being collected by the Dublin local authorities may not be sufficient to meet the volumetric contractual commitment which forms part of the public private partnership agreement. Any inability on the part of the authorities to meet this commitment could give rise to public financial implications which would be a matter for those authorities to address. My concern in this regard is linked to my determination to ensure that the pathway to economic recovery on which we are now embarked does not lead to a business as usual approach to waste generation or to the management of the waste which might result from increased consumption. Rather, I am determined to secure significant decoupling of waste arising from future growth and, to that end, I will bring proposals to Government to implement key recommendations of the international review of waste management policy published in November 2009.

In these circumstances, I have decided that the most appropriate course of action is to appoint an authorised person under section 224 of the Local Government Act 2001 to conduct a review of the parameters of the project. This will address the nature and extent of financial and related risks and consequences which may arise for Dublin City Council in connection with its participation in the project agreement, in a changing policy, legal and economic environment.

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