I propose to take Questions Nos. 110 and 111 together.
The Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA) on the collection of household waste carried out in 2012 analysed in depth the household waste collection market and gave a comprehensive overview of the market structure and industry in Ireland.
It recognised that concentration had occurred in the market, as larger firms expanded, in part by acquiring smaller firms, and as local authorities withdrew from the national market. The RIA further noted that, as the household waste collection market develops, consolidation is likely over the medium to long term, in which a small number of vertically integrated waste collection firms may capture more of the national market.
In terms of costs to collectors, the exact costs of servicing any given householder will differ considerably due to a number of variables, including the demographic and geographic nature of the local market, shift patterns, the frequency of the service, the degree of segregated collection, and, in many cases, the degree to which a collection route serves both household and commercial waste.
In terms of moving to pay-by-weight, the RIA also highlighted that a transition to weight-based charging on a national basis could be achieved relatively cheaply, in view of the potential benefits. The necessary capital investment primarily involves fitting transponders to individual bins, and equipping refuse collection vehicles with data readers and weighing equipment. Costs in relation to transponders set out in the RIA were understood to be approximately €2.50 per unit, and approximately €3.00 installation cost per unit. Equipping a refuse collection vehicle with the necessary data reader and weighing equipment is understood to cost approximately €30,000 per vehicle or approximately 10% of the capital cost of the vehicle. Annual repair and maintenance costs are understood to be of the order of 7% of the initial investment, e.g. €2,100 per refuse collection vehicle.
The Waste Management (Waste Collection Permit) Regulations 2007, as amended, have required, since 1 July 2015, that vehicles collecting household waste in reusable receptacles (such as wheelie bins) weigh the waste collected and to make this information available to the householder at least once per month.
