Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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505. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if waste operators will be directed to install a clip on the lids of bins to prevent the bins being blown open during stormy weather and the escape of rubbish; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52776/18]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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Each local authority has discretion to draw up its own bye-laws on waste presentation in accordance with: the Local Government Act, 2001; Section 35 of the Waste Management Act, 1996 and Section 21 of the Litter Pollution Act, 1997 (if necessary). The power to adopt such by-laws is a reserved function.

While the power to make a bye-law and its actual content remain matters exclusively for each individual local authority, it is Government policy that a regionalised approach to both waste management planning and regulatory enforcement is adopted. Accordingly, the three Regional Waste Management Offices were established in 2013, with formation of the Waste Enforcement Regional Lead Authorities (WERLAs) following in 2015.

One of the priority tasks contained in the three Regional Waste Management Plans 2015-2021 was to commence a project to attain a more unified approach to the content and making of waste presentation bye-laws.

A Template for a Bye-law on Waste Presentationhas been prepared by the three Regional Waste Management Offices and circulated to local authorities with a view to standardising such bye-laws across the State. The template does contain a specific provision in relation to the maintenance and management of waste containers so as not to be a source of nuisance or litter, as well as provisions on the storage and presentation of waste containers.