Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I have been listening to this conversation. Changing consumer behaviour has been mentioned. I am of the view it is positive reinforcement, not attaching charges to recycling, that will change behaviour, for example, a weight related monetary incentive at the end of the year. Something must be done to incentivise people. This situation is being handled the wrong way round. The Journal of Economic Surveyshas indicated that monetary incentives had a greater impact on household recycling than any other initiative.That indicates that the monetary incentives had a greater impact on household recycling than any other initiative. In terms of people's behaviour, when they are charged or taxed for something they view it as something negative, regardless of whether they save money as a result of it later. They just see it as a charge and then regard recycling as a negative process rather than a positive one that will be a gain for them.

In terms of having two and three bins, in Tallaght it is very difficult. If we bring in a pay by weight system I believe it will make the problem of illegal dumping worse because when one lives in a housing estate like Killinarden, we all live on top of each other, so to speak. Our sitting room is in our kitchen so we cannot have three bins to dispose of our waste. The structures are not in place for us to do it. If we have a brown bin, a green bin and a black bin outside our doors, and some of us live in very small apartments and flats, and they are robbed, we cannot afford to replace them. We cannot bring them into the house because they would be on top of us. We do not have back and front gardens. Regardless of what system is brought in, the structures are not in place for residents in many estates to recycle, and it is just counter-productive. We live at the foot of the mountains. I could bring the Minister on any trail on the Dublin Mountains Way and he will see the huge amount of illegal dumping, which will only get worse. Most of us have got rid of our green bins, if they have not been robbed or burned at Hallowe'en. I am saying to the Minister that there are other solutions which would be regarded as positive reinforcement.

When this debate arose years ago I knew a man who lived in extreme poverty in Cushlawn. At the time the aluminium factory in Tallaght village used to pay for returned cans and he would spend the entire day collecting cans, which he would deposit them and get back the money. In Germany, when one deposits empty bottles one gets money back. That type of positive reinforcement for waste management would be much more productive than charging for waste.