Written answers

Thursday, 13 March 2008

Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government

Recycling Policy

1:00 pm

Photo of Olwyn EnrightOlwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 196: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government his views on a reverse vending machine approach to collecting certain recyclable materials; if his Department is considering the roll out of same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11051/08]

Photo of John GormleyJohn Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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Automated reverse vending machines can be a feature of deposit and refund schemes aimed at supporting recovery rates for certain types of packaging waste. Directive 94/62/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on packaging and packaging waste (the Packaging Directive) is based on the concept of producer responsibility, which effectively requires producers to contribute to the waste management costs of products which they have placed on the market at end-of-life. Under the Directive, Ireland was required to achieve a 25% recovery rate of packaging waste by 1 July 2001, increasing to a 50% recovery rate by 31 December 2005.

Practical implementation of the Directive in Ireland is organised mainly through a collective industry-based compliance scheme operated by Repak Limited which is working successfully. The National Waste Report 2006, published in January by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), states that packaging waste recovery increased to 57.3% in that year, indicating that Ireland continues to exceed the current target recovery rate of 50% set by the Packaging Directive.

I fully recognise that despite progress on recycling we need to continue to improve our performance. The Programme for Government commits us to a comprehensive review of waste management planning, which I have asked my Department to initiate. This review, the procurement for which is currently under way, will ensure that our waste management plans reflect best international practice and that we have the policies and infrastructure to meet ambitious environmental objectives. The review will also look at the desirability of other producer responsibility schemes, including deposit and refund.

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