Bio-waste, A Lot Done and A Lot More To Do!

Recent statistics from Europe show that Ireland is the 7th largest producer per capita of municipal waste and has a lot of work to do to catch up with its EU counterparts!  Municipal waste is collected by or on behalf of municipal authorities and disposed of through waste management systems. It consists mainly of waste generated by households, although it also includes similar waste from sources such as shops, offices and public institutions. And Ireland produced 586kg per person in 2014 (the latest available data). The average production per capita across the 28 EU members is 475kg. We therefore produce on average 109kg (23{b050ebef00e2b6e935b95b021e9f55f4ab20ffeed47f29e2aa25a2081fec5bc8}) more per person than our EU counterparts. Of the 240 million tonnes  produced in Europe, 27{b050ebef00e2b6e935b95b021e9f55f4ab20ffeed47f29e2aa25a2081fec5bc8} was sent to landfill, 27{b050ebef00e2b6e935b95b021e9f55f4ab20ffeed47f29e2aa25a2081fec5bc8} was recycled, 26{b050ebef00e2b6e935b95b021e9f55f4ab20ffeed47f29e2aa25a2081fec5bc8} was incinerated and 15{b050ebef00e2b6e935b95b021e9f55f4ab20ffeed47f29e2aa25a2081fec5bc8} was composted.  Ireland’s recycling rate in 2014 was 34{b050ebef00e2b6e935b95b021e9f55f4ab20ffeed47f29e2aa25a2081fec5bc8}, some 7{b050ebef00e2b6e935b95b021e9f55f4ab20ffeed47f29e2aa25a2081fec5bc8} above the EU average, while  its composting rate was 6{b050ebef00e2b6e935b95b021e9f55f4ab20ffeed47f29e2aa25a2081fec5bc8}, well below the EU average of 15{b050ebef00e2b6e935b95b021e9f55f4ab20ffeed47f29e2aa25a2081fec5bc8}. Recent reports also indicate that 427,000 tonnes of Irish waste was turned into fuel for  energy plants. One such plant will be the Poolbeg incinerator, which will incinerate 600,000 tonnes of waste per annum.

Brown Bin is a Must!

These figures show  the need for households to utilise the Brown Bin, as 94{b050ebef00e2b6e935b95b021e9f55f4ab20ffeed47f29e2aa25a2081fec5bc8} of bio waste is still, it would appear from the 2014 Euro Stat figures, going either to landfill or being contaminated, so as to be of little value. It is hoped that figures would improve with the roll out of the Brown Bin and the introduction of Pay By Weight . But alas Pay by Weight has been shelved, and as no recent statistics have been produced  since 2014, our ranking among our peers is unknown. As of today we do not know if we have met the target set by the EU as to the amount of Biodegradable Municipal Waste that we can direct to landfill. Current fears are that we have not, and that not only will fines be imposed on us but valuable resources will continue to be lost and wasted …. the ultimate lose, lose!