Deirdre Clune (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 434: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the changes that are required to reduce the level of organic waste going to landfill; the time scale for this introduction; the preparedness of landfill operator for this change; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23383/10]

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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The Landfill Directive has particular requirements in terms of diversion of biodegradable waste from landfill as well as pre-treatment obligations, and these are set out in Articles 5 and 6(a) of the Directive. These treatment and diversion obligations restrict the tonnage of biodegradable waste that can be accepted at landfills and the restrictions involved are to be introduced on a phased basis up to 2016. The diversion obligations of the Landfill Directive for Ireland can be summarised as follows:

By July 2010, Ireland can only landfill a maximum quantity of 916,000 tonnes,

By July 2013, this figure is reduced to 610,000 tonnes, and

By July 2016 the figure is further reduced to 427,000 tonnes.

In 2008, the latest year for which figures are available, Ireland landfilled 1,196,044 tonnes of biodegradable waste, which leaves a gap to target of some 280,000 tonnes to be achieved to comply with the 2010 target set in the Directive.

The separate collection and development of outlets for organic waste will play a significant part in meeting the Directive's diversion targets. The separate kerbside collection of household food and garden waste (in brown bins) has been increasing substantially, doubling from 18,705 tonnes in 2007 to 37,920 tonnes in 2008, with the number of local authority areas where the separate kerbside collection service is provided, by local authority and/or private collectors, increasing from 13 to 16. In addition, in December 2009, I introduced legislation requiring the separate collection of commercial biodegradable waste; this will become operational from 1 July 2010 and has considerable potential to divert large quantities of food waste from landfill.

In the context of the development of a new waste policy framework, in respect of which I expect to issue a policy document for consultation in the coming weeks, and otherwise, a range of measures are being developed in order to underpin further progress towards the improved management of biodegradable municipal waste and to secure compliance with the Landfill Directive. These include:

· Greater penetration of separate organic waste collections, possibly supported by further legislative measures;

· Continued promotion of food waste prevention through the National Waste Prevention Programme initiatives such as StopFoodWaste.ie, Green Business and Green Hospitality Awards; and

· Encouraging the provision of adequate infrastructure to treat the large quantities of organic (particularly food) waste that must be collected separately and diverted from landfill and developing outlets for the products of such treatment.

In 2009, the Environmental Protection Agency published guidance on municipal waste pre-treatment and, on foot of that guidance, started to review municipal waste landfill licences and attach appropriate pre-treatment licence conditions. This process is now almost complete. The enforcement of waste restriction obligations at landfills will be a major priority for the EPA in the coming years.