mandatory levy for green bins shelved

Issued : Wednesday 18 May, 2016

I welcome the decision to scrap the proposed mandatory levy for green bins by the Government. At our recent County Council meeting we discussed the report below. When discussing the report I raised my concerns regarding illegal dumping, back yard burning and extra pressure been put on the Council’s recycling centres/banks.

 I also stated I raised my concerns with the former Minister at the time earlier this year.  Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council was progressive when they introduced the pay by weight on their black bin collection in 2005, hence residents got involved in reduce, reuse and recycle.  Business and companies should be encouraged to reduce their packaging. 

 I hope the Minister took on board the following motion, which was agreed by all the Councillors on Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council at the Council meeting on the 9^th May 2016.

 “That this Council agrees to write to the Minister for Climate Change, Communications and Natural Resources and requests he reverse the Statutory Instrument which means waste collection companies will start charging for green waste on 1 July.”

MEETING OF DUN LAOGHAIRE-RATHDOWN COUNTY COUNCIL

09 MAY 2016

REPORT ON WASTE MANAGEMENT REGULATIONS 2016

Introduction

Following the signing of new Waste Management regulations by the Minister in 2015 and 2016 http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2016/si/24/made/en/pdf it is now the situation that

from the 1st July 2016 waste contractors will apply a charge based on the weight of each bin collected.

Waste companies charge for collecting waste in different ways including flat fee, pay per lift and Pay by Weight. Typically there will be two elements to the charges from 1st July, a Fixed

Charge (for the provision of the service) and a weight charge (based on waste type). Each waste type i.e. recycling, food waste and general waste, will have a specific charge per kg of

waste presented.

Impact on householders

The introduction of PBW nationally will encourage waste prevention and resource–efficient behavior. The advantage of Pay by Weight is that it gives the householder more control over

waste bills. The less the bin weighs, the less paid, so there is a great incentive to prevent and recycle waste. This is also good for the environment. In DLR where Pay by Weight of

residual waste (black bin) has been operating since 2005, householders have become more efficient in segregating their waste, leading to a reduction in the amount of waste collected.

How Pay by Weight works

From 1 July 2015 waste collectors have been required to weigh a bin each time it is collected and to make that information available to the customer. From 1 July 2016 waste

contractors will apply a charge based on the weight of the bin collected. It is important to note that no new fee or charge is being introduced; the new requirement is simply that

collection costs must be based on the weight of the waste collected. A service fee may also be applied and may vary from collector to collector. The per kilo element of the charge for

residual, recyclable and food waste (i.e. black or purple, green and brown bin) must meet the treatment costs of the waste collected.

The recycling & food waste bin per kg charge will be cheaper than the residual (black) bin so by segregating correctly less goes in the residual bin reducing the waste charge.

Regional Waste Offices have been tasked by the DECLG to rollout an education/awareness campaign in advance of the introduction of weight based charges on 1st July. The campaign is currently being prepared by a Project Team from the 3 Regions and will be launched on the 18th May.

It is a matter for each Waste Operator to introduce a charging system that will comply with the regulations. There are no details available to the Council on the charges proposed by any operator.

Designated Bag Areas

Following the introduction of pay by weight in 2005 by DLR a residual amount of customers in the Dun Laoghaire and Blackrock areas remained on a bagged collection service as some

properties were considered unsuitable for a wheeled bin service. Most of these continue to receive a bagged collection service in 2016.

It is intended to designate these specific areas as being only suitable for the collection of kerbside waste in non-reusable receptacles such as bags in accordance with S.I No.197/2015 section 2. (s) http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2015/si/197/made/en/print

Civic Amenity Sites/Recycling Centres

Ballyogan Recycling Park is provided by and operated under contract by the Council and enables householders to deposit a wide range of household waste including recyclable and

non-recyclable materials, bulky household waste and certain categories of household hazardous waste. The charges for bulky and residual household waste are currently fixed in relation to the

vehicle entering the paid area. Under the regulations such facilities will be required to charge on a by-weight basis for accepting residual (black bag) waste from 1 July, 2016. No

other facility in the County accepts this waste type.

The Council will introduce a charging rate per kilo for residual (black bag) waste that will meet the operational costs for dealing with this waste. Bulky waste will continue to be charged by vehicle. Discussions with the contracted operator Thornton’s Recycling have commenced regarding the implementation of the regulations and also changes that may be necessary to the existing configuration of the Ballyogan site.

All charges in Ballyogan are set by the Council. The recycling centres at Shanganagh and Eden Park accept a wide range of materials for recycling free of charge. The overall cost of the Ballyogan site is generally covered by the gate fees and Council resources. There will continue to be no charge for recyclable material at all three facilities. The projected costs and income for these recycling facilities and bring banks are reviewed each year as part of the Council’s budgetary process.

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