Waste Action Plan for a Circular Economy

The key targets under the Waste Action Plan for a Circular Economy (link will be live from 11:30) are:

 

Households and Businesses 

  • Recycling targets for waste collectors
  • Standardised bin colours across the State: green for recycling, brown for organic waste and black for residual.
  • Environmental levies- for waste recovery and single use coffee cups  to encourage recycling and reuse
  • Waste oversight body to manage consumer rights
  • Education and awareness campaign to improve waste segregation

Food Waste

  • Halve our food waste by 2030
  • Sustainable food waste management options for all homes and businesses
  • Waste segregation infrastructure for apartment dwellers

Plastic, Packaging and Single Use Plastic (SUP)

  • Deposit and return scheme for plastic bottles and aluminium cans
  • Single Use Plastics ban, including cotton bud sticks, cutlery, plates, stirrers, chopsticks, straws, polystyrene containers and oxo-degradable plastic products from July 2021.
  • Commitment to ban further products such as (but not limited to) Wet wipes (non-medical); SUP hotel toiletries; SUP sugar/sauce/mayonnaise etc. items.
  • Reduce number of SUPs being placed on the market by 2026

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)

  • Mandatory EPR for all packaging producers before 2024 EU deadline
  • Producers liable for eco modulation of fees
  • All packaging reusable or recyclable by 2030

Construction and Demolition Waste

  • Revision of the 2006 Best Practice Guidelines for C&D waste
  • Streamline by-product notification and end-of-waste decision making processes
  • Working group to develop national end-of-waste applications for priority waste streams

Textiles

  • Textile action group to explore options to improve future circularity in textiles
  • Work with Irish designers and retailers to promote eco-design for clothing and textiles
  • Consider global impacts of the international trade in used textiles

Treatment

  • Review State support for development of recycling infrastructure
  • Examine legislation and procedures for development of waste management infrastructure
  • Standardise waste streams accepted at civic amenity sites

Enforcement

  • Expanded role for WERLAs to address priority waste enforcement challenges
  • Unauthorised sites action plan and anti-dumping toolkit
  • Fixed penalty notices for breaches of waste law

Government Leadership on Circular Economy

  • High level All of Government Circular Economy Strategy
  • Take the necessary steps to include green criteria and circular economy principles in all public procurement.
  • Develop Circular Economy Sectoral Roadmaps
  • Explore how Ireland’s digital sector can accelerate transition to a circular economy.