Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 31 May 2018
5. Deputy Eamon Ryan asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the steps he plans to take to achieve the measure that 100% of plastics are recyclable and that 50% of such materials are recycled by 2030 as per the EU plastics strategy; and the timeframe for the introduction of such measures. [24175/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI ask the Minister to outline how we will completely change our plastics system. The European Commission was out earlier in the week on one aspect, that of single-use plastic, but we have to go far beyond that and tackle a whole range of different issues. This morning we hear the plan of this Government is to burn our waste. An incinerator is to be built in Cork, there is one in Limerick and the one in Dublin is going full steam. I do not think that is the future. I do not think anything this Government is doing in terms of the environment is looking to the future so I am keen to hear what are the real plans to treat plastic waste in a serious way.
Ireland has supported the adoption of a set of ambitious measures to make EU waste legislation fit for the future as part of the EU's wider circular economy policy. The new recycling and land-filling targets set a credible and ambitious path for better waste management in Europe. They include a new recycling rate of 55% for plastic packaging waste by 2035 which will help drive real progress towards the circular economy.
In January 2018 the European Commission published the European strategy for plastics in a circular economy.
The strategy focuses on plastic production and use and sets a goal of ensuring all plastic packaging is recyclable by 2030. I recently wrote to the European Commissioner with responsibility for the environment to welcome the EU plastics strategy. I assured him Ireland would fully embrace the ambitions in the new strategy. I asked the Commission to focus, in particular, on the most difficult non-recyclable plastics such as soft wrapping, film and single use items and bringing forward timetables.
I am pleased, therefore, to note this week that the Commission has published a further proposal for dealing with the ten single-use plastic products and fishing gear that together account for 70% of the marine litter in Europe. The proposal includes: a ban on certain plastic products; targets for reducing the use of certain plastics; and obligations on producers to cover the costs of waste management and clean up.
I am urging the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers to consider these proposals as soon as possible so they can be implemented in Ireland and other member states. Before this week's Commission proposals, it would have been illegal for individual member states to take actions to ban packaging or interfere with the EU internal market. Now all 28 member states will be able to move as one to tackle plastic waste.
I am not prepared to wait for EU-wide action. In advance of the EU bans and restrictions coming into place, I am currently considering what financial incentives or penalties I can introduce in Ireland in the interim to tackle the use of the single use plastic items identified by the Commission in a way that is compatible with EU legislation. I am looking forward to bringing forward practical solutions and a package of measures, along with my Government colleagues responsible for marine environment and fisheries, that will work in an Irish context.
I am very glad to hear that. I was also thrilled to hear the EU proposals this week because they mirror exactly what is in our waste reduction Bill. We were a year ahead of the Commission on the key things, including a ban on single use items like knives, forks and cotton tips, tackling single use cups and containers, the proposal for a 15 cent latte levy on plastic cups to fund the compost bin collection system and a deposit refund scheme which is the only way we could achieve the target of a 90% reduction in single-use plastic bottle recycling by 2025.
It is to be hoped our Bill can go to Committee Stage and be implemented. If there are amendments from the Minister on Committee Stage I would welcome them. It is doable. A Bill is in place and we do not have to wait for the European Parliament to legislate. We can legislate ahead of the curve in this instance. Will the Minister agree to allow the Bill to go to Committee Stage? What do we have to do to achieve that?
Given what we heard earlier about how long it takes to do things, should we not act with a certain urgency? The 2025 target is only seven years away. Given what we heard earlier about how difficult it is to introduce renewable incentives and broadband, we need to be quick. Will the Minister allow the Bill to go to Committee Stage quite quickly, enact it and get on with reform?
I agree with everything Deputy Ryan said. As he knows, I fully support the principles behind the Bill he introduced. He might give me a copy of the response he received from the Ceann Comhairle which would help to facilitate the debate. As the Deputy knows, we discussed the issue in the committee in private session, disappointingly, at the last meeting. It would be extremely helpful to get clarity on that issue.
Deposit and return is part of a whole suite of issues. Given the plastic industry here and the brief engagement I had with Athlone Institute of Technology, there may be opportunities in respect of that. I have also said we have a very different waste collection structure in this country. We need to make sure the system we design meets our needs, not those of the Germans or Dutch. We need to primarily ensure that waste is not generated in the first place and where it is generated that it is not going into landfill and can be recycled. That has to be our priority. Speaking privately with my ministerial colleagues at the Council of Ministers on the last occasion we met, I made it quite clear that if private companies can get rid of single-use plastic on a commercial basis within five years we should not wait 12 years to do the same.
We have to make sure the system is right for Irish circumstances, but we also have to make sure that we are not afraid of pushing the industry. In the case of a deposit refund scheme the latest research we have shows that our companies are paying only 0.2% per container towards the recycling system. We think that should rise to the European average, if not slightly higher. That is the primary mechanism by which we can fund the new deposit refund scheme. Companies will not like that but it is part of their responsibility. It is called corporate social environmental responsibility. If everyone is doing it, there is no disadvantage to one company over another. There will be a fair and level playing field and companies will not be at a significant disadvantage. I am glad to hear that the Minister seems willing to allow the Bill to go to Committee Stage. I will talk to the Ceann Comhairle and make sure that whatever he needs to do is done.
I wish to make a wider point. This is one very important aspect of what we need to do. Another important aspect of the European circular economy and plastics directive means we have to do much more. I fear that the news today that there will be another 250,000 tonne incinerator - incinerators love plastic because it gives them energy to burn - is in direct contradiction to the European circular economy and plastics strategy. It is not a circular economy when waste is being burned. There is still 20% ash and all sorts of environmental considerations. The wasteful use of material is just plain wrong. How does the Minister intend to implement other massive changes we need to make when we will be burning so much waste?
I am not afraid to push industry. I introduced the ban on flat rate bin charges last year. I am rolling out brown bins across the country, which the industry does not like. Many issues Deputy Ryan touched on are issues we are actively engaged with at the moment.
As the Deputy knows, plastic does not go into incineration; the vast majority goes into other facilities across the country. It should not be going into facilities in the first place. The major problem we have is the contamination of plastic. The reason China is closed to us in respect of plastic is because of the scale of contamination. Since the back end of last year, we now have a uniform list of materials which can go into the recycle bin. Paper and plastic needs to be dry and clean if it is to be put into the bin. Recycling ambassadors are knocking on doors in Roscommon, Galway and every other county across the country to explain to people what can and cannot go into a recycling bin, how it should be presented and what can and cannot go into the brown bin. We want brown bins to be rolled out to every home across the country. We need to encourage homeowners to start segregating their materials properly.
We have spent 50 minutes on five questions. While there is some latitude, we have gone way over time. I will be very strict on time for Other Questions. There will be 30 seconds to introduce, two minutes for the Minister and one minute for each supplementary question and reply. I want to be fair to all of those who have tabled questions. Sometimes as we come towards the end of the debate people who have sat around for a long time unfortunately do not have their question answered.
