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Waste Disposal.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 July 2006

Tuesday, 4 July 2006

Questions (836, 837, 838, 839, 840)

Enda Kenny

Question:

852 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the revenue collected to date from charges levied as a result of his implementation of the Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment regulations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26227/06]

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Enda Kenny

Question:

853 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the companies which have been paid to collect, treat and dispose of waste electronic and electrical equipment in an environmentally sound manner; the amount paid to each company; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26228/06]

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Enda Kenny

Question:

854 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the total amount of waste electronic and electrical equipment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26229/06]

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Enda Kenny

Question:

855 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the way in which revenue raised by waste electronic and electrical equipment charges has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26230/06]

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Enda Kenny

Question:

856 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he will make a statement on the implementation of Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment regulations. [26231/06]

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Written answers

I propose to take Questions Nos. 852 to 856, inclusive, together.

The United Nations has labelled electrical and electronic waste as one of the world's fastest growing and most hazardous waste streams. The European Union has enacted the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive aimed at bringing the problem under control. On 13 August 2005, Ireland became one of only 3 EU Member States to implement this Directive fully when the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations came into effect.

The arrangements introduced by these Regulations have been hugely successful. In less than 7 months 14,500 tonnes of Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment were collected for recycling. This included 11,000 tonnes of fridges and freezers and over 1,000 tonnes of old TVs. An annual collection rate of 6.7Kg per person of this problematic waste has been achieved in Ireland, far ahead of our EU target of 4Kg per person by 2008.

As a result of this Government initiative, Ireland is to the fore in terms of recycling waste electrical and electronic equipment and we are now seeing major investments being made in a whole new recycling industry.

There is no levy on electrical and electronic products placed on the market. The WEEE Directive allows producers to show the cost of recovering and recycling "historic" waste i.e. waste arising from electric and electronic products put on the market before 13 August 2005. These costs are referred to as Environmental Management Costs — or EMCs. They are not imposed by, or remitted to, the Government, but are paid by producers to the two collective compliance schemes operating in Ireland, WEEE Ireland and the European Recycling Platform. As schemes are operating under the responsibility of the producers, information on the revenue collected to date is not available in my Department.

The purpose of the EMCs is to enable the schemes to pay for the environmentally sound management of all "historic" household WEEE taken back by retailers or deposited by members of the public at local authority civic amenity sites. The procurement of services for the collection, treatment and disposal of WEEE in an environmentally sound manner is a matter for the collective compliance schemes concerned. Consequently, information on companies contracted by the collective compliance schemes and amounts paid to them is not available in my Department.

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