Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 21 October 2020
27. Deputy Eoghan Murphy asked the Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications if waste management companies provide information on the percentage of green domestic waste which is eventually recycled; and the systems in place to verify this information. [31899/20]
View answerThe EPA calculates recycling rates based on a combination of waste treatment data obtained directly from waste treatment facilities, waste generation data from waste collectors (obtained via the National Waste Collection Permit Office) and export data (obtained from the National Trans-frontier Shipping Office). To obtain more accurate information on recycling rates and to satisfy new EU reporting requirements, from 2021 the EPA is asking waste operators to report on the actual recycling / recovery rates achieved both at facilities in Ireland and abroad for exported waste. Evidence will be required to support and verify the information reported.
The most recent Waste Characterisation Study on municipal waste conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2018 found that 67% of what is placed in household recycling bins is suitable for recycling while 50% of what is placed in recycling bins in the commercial sector is suitable for recycling.
The Waste Action Plan for a Circular Economy, which I launched in September this year, includes a commitment to incorporate municipal waste recycling targets as conditions of waste collection permits i.e. collectors will be required to achieve a 55% recycling rate of municipal waste by 2025, 60% by 2030 and 65% by 2035.
The Waste Action Plan also contains a commitment to deliver behavioural change campaigns for individuals, businesses and the public sector to encourage improved waste segregation and recycling which will help to ensure that all material placed in the recycling bin can actually be recycled.
