Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Question 119: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he will increase the role of Repak in the collection of waste packaging; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22534/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Ireland has enjoyed considerable success in recent years in meeting targets for the recovery and recycling of packaging waste. There has been a rapid improvement in our performance in recycling this waste stream: the recycling rate rose from 15% in 1998 to 56.4% in 2004 with Ireland exceeding the EU target of 50% set for 2005.

Repak Limited was established by Irish industry in 1997 to promote, co-ordinate and finance the collection and recovery of packaging waste with a view to achieving Ireland's packaging waste recovery and recycling targets under the Packaging Waste Directive and is the sole approved compliance scheme for the recovery of packaging waste in Ireland. Repak membership income is used to subsidise the collection of packaging waste from both the household and commercial sectors. In the household sector, subsidy is provided towards the collection of packaging waste from bring banks and civic amenity recycling centres, as well as segregated kerbside collection of packaging waste from households. Waste collection or recovery services are provided by local authorities or by private waste operators rather than by Repak.

Repak is currently developing a six-year strategy to cover the period 2006 to 2011 when new EU targets will have to be met, including challenging materials based targets. This strategy is being developed under the auspices of a National Strategy Group on Packaging Waste Recycling made up of the relevant public and private sector stakeholders which was established in 2004. The Strategy will develop a range of initiatives with the objective of further improving national performance on the prevention, recovery and recycling of this important waste stream.