Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 January 2024
126. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications what action his Department is taking to fund and promote community scale composting initiatives in urban areas in view of the high levels of organic household waste that still goes into landfill/general waste in households; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2625/24]
View answerThe primary focus for my Department is to encourage both householders and commercial premises to minimise the volume of waste they produce in the first place, and then to maximise the volume of recyclable and organic material which is diverted away from the residual waste bin through improved waste segregation practices. In terms of organic waste the recent expansion of household brown bin collections to all households in the State with a waste collection service and the introduction of incentivised waste collection charging in the commercial sector are expected to result in a significant reduction in the amount of organic waste placed in the residual bin. The roll-out of these measures is being supported by education and awareness campaigns which will help inform both householders and commercial premises on how to manage their waste in a more sustainable manner, please see MyWaste.ie for further information.
The Circular Economy Innovation Grant Scheme (CEIGS), administered by my Department, directly supports the growth of the circular economy in Ireland via a competitive funding process. The scheme aims to support innovation and demonstration circular economy projects by small to medium enterprises and social enterprises. In 2021, 10 projects were selected to benefit from a total funding pot of €490,000. A second funding call was launched in 2022, with total available funding set at €650,000. The Circular Economy Strategy further commits to increasing per annum funding under the grant scheme to €1 million by 2024. It is intended that a third call will be launched early in 2024.
