Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 791: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the areas to which the producer responsibility initiative for waste recovery has been put in place. [27659/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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A key component of waste management policy in Ireland in recent years has been the development of producer responsibility initiatives (PRIs). Such initiatives are in line with EU and national policy on waste management which is firmly grounded on the internationally recognised waste management hierarchy which prioritises respectively waste prevention and minimisation: increased levels of reuse, recycling and biological treatment; energy recovery; and finally, utilising landfill as the last resort for residual waste that cannot otherwise be recovered. This approach is reflected in my Department's policy statements Changing Our Ways (1998), Delivering Change (2002), and Taking Stock and Moving Forward (2004).

Successful PRIs are already operating in Ireland in the areas of packaging, farm plastics, and waste electrical and electronic equipment. I recently signed regulations for a further producer responsibility initiative in relation to an EU Directive on end-of-life vehicles and work is ongoing in developing a producer responsibility initiative for waste tyres.

While the concept of producer responsibility is well embedded in waste management policy and practice there is a need to build on this experience with regard to the contribution which it can make to waste prevention and the reduction of negative environmental impacts. Extended Producer Responsibility involves the assignment of increased responsibility to the producer and provides producers with a direct financial incentive to incorporate environmental considerations in the design of products. It deals not just with the waste phase, but addresses upstream issues in relation to resource selection and productdesign.

This focus on design is already incorporated in EU legislation on End-of-Life Vehicles and Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and the Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS) Directives, all of which are now transposed in Irish law.

Also relevant is the overall National Waste Prevention Programme currently being developed and implemented by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and which involves the development of waste prevention and minimisation strategies aimed at reducing negative environmental impacts. The EPA have been allocated an initial budget of €2m to fund the Programme.

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 792: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the national waste prevention targets he has set. [27660/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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An effective basis for addressing our waste management responsibilities has been put in place through my Department's policy statements Changing Our Ways, Delivering Change (1998), and Taking Stock Moving Forward (2004); through statutory waste management plans (largely prepared on a regional basis), and the comprehensive regulatory framework now in place in relation to waste.

The Government's approach is based on the internationally recognised waste management hierarchy of prevention/minimisation, significantly increased levels of recycling, energy recovery and, finally, utilising landfill as the last resort for residual waste that cannot otherwise be recovered.

A key priority currently is the development and roll out of a National Waste Prevention Programme. A Core Prevention Team was established in 2004 in the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop and drive the Programme. The Core Prevention Team is in the process of developing baseline studies as part of the initial phase of the Programme. The five-year programme also envisages mandatory waste and material audits, waste prevention pilot schemes etc. The initial budget for the National Waste Prevention Programme is €2m.

A key component of the waste management system in Ireland has been the development of producer responsibility initiatives. In recent years, successful producer responsibility initiatives have been introduced in the areas of packaging waste, waste electrical and electronic equipment and farm plastics.

I recently made regulations for a further producer responsibility initiative in relation to an EU Directive on end-of-life vehicles. These initiatives are based on the promotion of waste prevention and minimisation objectives. Work is also underway in developing producer responsibility initiatives for waste tyres and for newsprint.

Waste prevention and minimisation has also been actively promoted in the Race Against Waste campaign. The media campaign has focused on the prevention of waste and the need to reduce, reuse and recycle and aims to turn awareness on waste issues into action to reduce the amount of waste being sent to landfill.

The campaign has also worked closely with Environmental Awareness Officers in all of the local authorities, who work locally with householders, schools, businesses and community groups. It has encouraged communities to minimise, recycle and compost their waste through the national Tidy Towns competition's Race Against Waste module.

In addition, waste prevention targets for biodegradable waste were recently set out in the National Strategy on Biodegradable Waste. The projections of biodegradable waste arising in future years in the Strategy are based on an expectation that the waste prevention initiatives outlined above will yield benefits in reducing the quantity of biodegradable municipal waste which would be generated in their absence.

They are a:

∙3% reduction factor in projected Biodegradable Municipal Waste (BMW) generation each year from 2005 to 2007;

∙4% reduction factor in projected BMW generation in the period 2008 to 2010,

∙5% reduction factor in projected BMW generation from 2011 to 2013, and a

∙6% reduction factor in projected BMW generation in the period 2014 to 2016.