Dan Boyle (Green Party)
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I am grateful to the Minister, Deputy Gormley, for coming to the House this evening to clarify the details of a recent significant move in Government waste disposal policy. I would like the Minister to put in a broader context some statements he has made in recent weeks. I am glad he is in attendance to do so. He stated clearly a number of weeks ago that incineration no longer forms the cornerstone of the Government's waste management policy. He followed that up last week by making clear that the Government has altered its previous policy on regional waste management plans, which had been that eight incinerators were required throughout the country. The Minister cited a study that was conducted by officials in the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, which indicated that a maximum of 400,000 tonnes of waste would have to be considered for thermal treatment each year. He made it clear that he is considering forms of thermal treatment other than incineration and is aiming to remove the need to consider incineration at all.

When the Minister's second statement was covered in the media, some reporters seemed to suggest that the 400,000 tonnes of waste he mentioned would necessitate two incinerators. They presumed that the two incinerators would be located at particular locations — Carranstown in County Meath and Ringaskiddy in County Cork. I would be grateful if the Minister could confirm not only that he did not talk about incineration as a technology in either of his statements, but also that he did not refer to any locations for incinerators. The proposal to locate an incinerator at Carranstown is something of a grey area following An Bord Pleanála's decision yesterday to allow that plant to have greater capacity. I appreciate that the Minister is not allowed to comment on decisions taken by An Bord Pleanála.

The media's suggestion that a domestic waste incinerator will be located in County Cork as part of this equation is also far off the mark. No planning application for a domestic waste incinerator has been made in the Cork area. If such an application is made, its fate will depend on a number of policy decisions which have yet to be clarified by the Minister. He has expressed his interest in the promotion of more environmentally friendly and sustainable forms of waste disposal treatment, such as mechanical and biological treatment. Thermal forms of treatment that follow mechanical and biological treatment, such as the reduction of refuse to derive fuel, will have to be considered as part of the new order of waste disposal treatment. We are trying to meet the commitment in the programme for Government to seek to reduce the proportion of waste consigned to landfill to just 10% within the lifetime of this Government. Regardless of how we treat our waste subsequently, it will ultimately go into cleanfill as treated waste or be used as some form of energy fuel. This will not have to be done through mass burn, high-stack incineration. I think clarity is needed in these areas if we are to clear up the unnecessary confusion that was created in the media reports I mentioned earlier.

In his original statement a number of weeks ago, the Minister said that incineration is no longer the cornerstone of Government policy. He said he was willing to honour another commitment in the programme for Government by ensuring that the landfill levy would not be changed in any way that would give an unfair competitive advantage to other waste disposal options, particularly incineration. It is clear from such logic that any increase in the landfill levy, which would probably be necessary if we are to reach our 10% target, would have to be accompanied by the imposition of levies on other unsustainable forms of waste disposal, such as incineration. We would have to give favourable treatment to better methods of recycling and the mechanical and biological treatment of waste. I ask the Minister to outline the trend of future Government policy. Can he confirm that his two statements constitute an official policy position of moving away from incineration? Can he confirm that he did not talk about incineration as any type of preferred technology and that, in fact, he said the opposite? Can he confirm that he did not mention any locations for the treatment of the 400,000 tonnes of waste? I refer to the waste for which proper methods of treatment have yet to be identified by his departmental officials.

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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I thank Senator Boyle for raising this issue. I am happy to have an opportunity to spell out the Government's position on waste management. I will also set out the progress already made in delivering the many commitments on waste management in the Government's policy programme. The objective underpinning all these initiatives is the creation of a world-class waste management system that places the maximum emphasis on waste prevention, reuse and recycling while using state-of-the-art technologies to deal with residual waste. We are not starting from scratch; we have increased our recycling rate from almost zero to approximately 35%. We are massively over-reliant on landfill, however. We must move away from this over-reliance not only because it is environmentally the right thing to do but also because we run the risk of EU infringement proceedings, with the potential for fines, if we do not. Previous Government policy, which was reflected in the existing suite of regional waste management plans, was tied to incineration as a magic bullet. That has changed and is not espoused in the programme for Government. We must look to alternatives, such as technologies that are more flexible, easier to deliver and more environmentally benign. Technologies in the areas of mechanical and biological treatment have advanced considerably in recent years and are well established in many countries. I recently saw a particularly good example in Austria. Incineration is not a one-track solution and is no longer the cornerstone of Irish waste management policy. The programme for Government clearly commits us to exploring the full range of technologies available to us, in particular, mechanical and biological treatment.

The data available to me suggest that with a developed MBT system the quantity of residual waste requiring disposal other than landfill would be reduced to some 400,000 tonnes by 2016. In this context it is clear that the more than 2 million tonnes of incineration capacity foreseen in the regional waste plans and as a consequence of commercial developments is way in excess of what might be needed. I see tremendous potential in other technologies for dealing with this residual waste of 400,000 tonnes, including co-firing in cement kilns or power plants. The residual waste could be transformed into a refuse-derived fuel, already referred to by Senator Boyle. Stakeholders in these sectors are already extremely interested in the potential of RDF, and I believe this should be explored in detail.

With regard to the existing incinerator plans around the country, such a vast capacity could seriously undermine our efforts to maximise recycling in the years ahead. I am therefore determined to change the emphasis away from incineration and I have recently advised Government colleagues of how we intend to proceed. The first step, already under way, is to create a scenario in which local authorities no longer underwrite incinerators in the form of public private partnerships by guaranteeing a supply of waste to such facilities. I am examining the potential for a policy direction to this effect using the powers available to me in the Waste Management Act.

The second and more expansive step is the review of waste management planning provided for in the programme for Government. I have advised the Government of my plans for this study and my Department is beginning the process. This will include a very high degree of consultation with key stakeholders and will be a truly comprehensive piece of work which will inform future national policy on waste in all its facets. Issues to be addressed will include how best to promote alternative technologies such as MBT and what standards should apply. It will also advise on how best to regulate the sector and what reforms may be needed in this regard. Taken together these initiatives will transform our approach to waste management.

In the context of climate change, it is important to note that MBT and refuse-derived fuel offers us the best solution. I confirm to Senator Boyle that he is correct; I did not mention any specific locations for thermal treatment. I emphasise that I see great potential for RDF, refuse-derived fuel. He is correct that the programme for Government states we will not offer a competitive advantage to incineration by increasing the landfill levy. We may well need to increase the landfill levy but I regard landfill and incineration as disposal methods. It is important to state that MBT is a means of substantially reducing waste, in particular the residual fraction. I acknowledge it is not without its problems but I believe it should and does form the cornerstone of Irish waste management policy. It can be done only if recycling rates are increased to 50% which is certainly achievable.