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Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Jackie Cahill: ...they give to a committee. This means that they have a full defence in any defamation action for anything said at a committee meeting. However, witnesses are expected not to abuse this privilege and may be directed to cease giving evidence on an issue at the Chair's direction. Witnesses should follow the direction of the Chair in this regard and are reminded of the long-standing...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Ossian Smyth: ...do my best to answer all of the questions from members. If I cannot, I will revert to them with answers. One of my Department’s functions in respect of waste management is to set the policy and legislative framework for the extended producer responsibility, EPR, model in Ireland across the various waste streams. Ireland uses the EPR model for dealing with a number of waste...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Jackie Cahill: I thank the Minister of State. This committee has discussed the collection of farm plastic on a number of occasions. There will be a lot of unease about how it is operating and there will be unease about the way IFFPG is performing as well. The first question I will ask is about the Minister of State's comment that the producer pays. It is the user of the plastic, in this case, the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Ossian Smyth: ...my Department earlier to tell officials that all the relevant yards are in compliance as of today. Obviously, I have not visited those yards today. I have not seen what they are like. I stand open to correction, but that is the information I have from my Department and from the local authorities concerned.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Tim Lombard: ...the Minister of State's presence. It is very important that he should be here. It is great that we have a Minister to go through the issue. He just explained to us how it actually operates, and we are very much aware of that. Basically, the producer and the farmer are probably the same person. The farmer buys the plastic, and the farmer also has to take it to the recycling depot....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Ossian Smyth: ...particular yard at any one time. Obviously, that changes from day to day. It is the responsibility of the local authorities to ensure that any waste collector is storing material within the terms and conditions of its permit and that it is not storing more than it should in its yard.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Ossian Smyth: The Department or Government is not keeping track of exactly how much plastic is in each yard every day of the year. What we are looking at is how much plastic has been produced and how much has been recycled.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Ossian Smyth: It is how much has been collected and then how much has been recycled.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Tim Lombard: No, that is the percentage that has been collected. These are slightly different issues; there is a difference between what is stored under the ownership of this company and what is recycled. I say that with respect to the Minister of State. If it is sitting in one of these five yards and it is not baled but it is compliant with the terms and conditions of the local authority, it is still...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Tim Lombard: We fully agree on that. The question is regarding how much of it is sitting there. The Minister of State has gone through the issues that have arisen with the Chinese authorities and the war. These are really serious issues. We are genuinely concerned that there could be stockpiles out there that have not been recycled. We know the collection rates are approximately 90%. They should be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Ossian Smyth: I think the Senator is asking whether there is a difference between the amount of material plastic film that is collected and what is actually recycled at the end of the year. In other words, he is asking if any more material is being collected than is actually being recycled and, if that is happening, whether there is a discrepancy. He is asking if we can provide figures for both. I will...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Tim Lombard: ...with regard to this product. We realise there is pressure here. We realise there is significant pressure in trying to find a home for this product. However, we need to find out what is happening and where. That is a genuine question within the farming community. The farming community is doing all the right things but it is being said to this committee that there are stockpiles in some...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Tim Lombard: ...the licensing. The Minister of State informed us that the day-to-day running of the organisation is not his job; it is the licensing. Can he give me the date on which the last licence was issued and the timeline for that licence? When will the next licence be issued? How does that process run?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Ossian Smyth: .... It is appointed in the same way as many other producer bodies with which we are familiar, such as Repak, etc. The producers get together to make a proposal for a scheme, the Minister reviews it and agrees terms and conditions with the producers for their organisation and corporate structure. The Minister agrees a method of reviewing their performance. In fact, we are currently...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Claire Kerrane: ...evening. We have had a number of witnesses before the committee on this issue. Stockpiling is one of the issues raised, as is the fact that farmers are paying on the double when it comes to waste and waste collection. All of that has been raised. I have two questions. When were the terms of approval that are granted by the Department with the IFFPG put in place? I apologise if the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Claire Kerrane: Given that the meetings between the Department and the IFFPG take place regularly, is the Minister of State aware of any issues that have been raised in respect of stockpiling? Are there concerns that stockpiling is taking place on yards?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Ossian Smyth: Certainly. This issue has arisen in questions in the Dáil and it has been publicly raised. As a result, it is one of the issues that is discussed.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Ossian Smyth: We specifically asked for it and we received it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Ossian Smyth: Its contractors’ yards are now in compliance with the local authorities’ terms and conditions.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recycling Farm Plastics: Discussion (Resumed) (15 May 2024)

Johnny Mythen: That is basically okay. We know that farmers are paying on the double. It seems to me that there are between 40,000 tonnes and 50,000 tonnes of plastic out there. One company is saying that the five locations are compliant, but I think that should be looked into in depth. An independent inspection should be carried out on that issue.