Vol. 515 No. 3
59 Ms O. Mitchell asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the plans, if any, in place or envisaged to encourage and incentivise operators into the recycling business in view of the lack of outlets for goods collected for recycling and the general uneconomic nature of the recycling market. [4917/00]
The waste management plans, currently being developed and adopted by the local authorities, generally incorporate proposals for household segregation and kerbside collection of organic waste and dry recyclables in urban areas; an extended network of "bring" facilities in rural areas, typically with a target density of one facility per 500 population; an increased network of civic amenity sites and waste transfer stations; and a range of waste treatment and disposal facilities.
These facilities, systematically planned and provided, will create a viable framework in volume terms for the development of material recycling and reprocessing capacity. In addition, relatively low waste disposal costs have militated in the past against a good recycling performance and waste recovery generally. This situation is changing as local authorities move rapidly towards full cost recoupment for the waste services which they provide. However it must also be recognised that the financial viability of waste recycling is dependent on the development of more extensive and stable markets for recyclable materials.
Producer responsibility initiatives offer considerable potential to bring industry's expertise to bear to devise workable and least-cost arrangements for waste recovery on a sectoral level. In addition to the current industry led schemes for packaging waste and farm plastics, I expect substantive progress this year on similar initiatives with the construction industry and motor industry sectors.
In addition the full benefits of the European Regional Development Fund investment of £7.7 million since 1997 in respect of some 70 individual projects for the development of recycling infrastructure in Ireland are currently coming on stream.
A policy statement on waste recycling and waste recovery generally is currently in preparation. This policy document will address in detail the factors and practical considerations which are relevant to the achievement of Government policy objectives in this area, and outline the scope of measures which will be undertaken in support of better recycling performance.
I also refer to the reply to Priority Question No. 25 on today's Order Paper.
