‘The impression here is that private waste collectors are the bad boys of the sector’

Environmental matters were to the fore of the discussions at the Tipperary County Council full meeting held on Monday last. Phillipa King, the Regional Waste Co-ordinator for the Southern Waste Region, made a presentation where she spoke about the Draft National Waste Management Plan.

The process to make submissions is open to the public until July 5 with more details at mywaste.ie about the draft plans. Phillipa spoke about using resources better as Ireland produces 13.9 million tonnes of waste each year which works out at 2.7 tonnes per person per year. Currently 40% of our waste is exported and so sustainable consumption has become a major issue.

Councillor David Dunne felt strongly that there needs to be a deposit and return scheme fast-tracked in Ireland and that waste collection is chaotic as well: “There is yellow, green, brown or black. No one knows what bin is what. Why then do we have ten trucks coming into a housing estate and wrecking our roads, perhaps the roads section should be more interested in it. You have a massive vehicle coming in two or three times a day polluting us with the fumes from the lorry,” he said before adding:

“I’m anxious to put in a submission. The first proposal I’d have is that we go back to the council because the council should never have gotten out of the waste business because now they are neither in it nor out.”

Councillor John Fitzgerald pointed out that he wouldn’t agree with Cllr Dunne about the issue:  
“Profit and wealth do create the jobs for people and that is something we probably disagree on.” He also raised the point about the bottle banks in the county filling up quickly across the county and becoming a dumping ground for other things.

He added that dumping is a serious issue in Tipperary: “I pick up pizza boxes after weekends outside my own house,” he said before adding that people must change. “The hate Ireland attitude of putting rubbish into the countryside and into the environment is something we really have to tackle because I think it has gone beyond the beyonds. There are nests of bottles and cans littering this lovely county.”  

Councillor Michael Murphy said that a transition to a circular economy and sustainable consumption principles as well as improving citizens’ behaviour. He too felt illegal dumping is an issue: “You only have to read the minutes of our monthly meeting to see this scourge,” he said before enquiring if there was a waste regulator.

“Pricing in the marketplace seems to be out of control. Licensed operators seem to be regularly increasing their annual service charges and there seems to be no control yet the burden is continuing. Families are under serious pressure and perhaps there is a link between these out of control charges and the illegal dumping increase.”

Councillor Jim Ryan, who also works in the industry, said that private waste collectors provide a good service. “The impression here today is that private waste collectors are the bad boys of the waste sector and they need to be reeled in, nothing could be further from the truth. Tipperary County Council for years were operating the waste collection service here in Tipperary and operated in huge losses,” before adding that private waste collectors are now operating very successfully. He said they “provide hundreds of local jobs here in Tipperary”.

Councillor Peggy Ryan spoke about the benefits of mywaste.ie website and spoke about fast fashion and the need for Irish-based solutions to waste issues: “Fast fashion isn’t good for anyone, neither the quality of the clothes nor the exploitative manner that the workers have to go through,” she said before calling for a greater awareness of the issues.

In response, Phillipa King said there was a new textile forum set up in the country now looking at the situation. She said it was important that everybody realises it costs to recycle before adding that the local government sector is going to do a review on household waste charges and see how it can be incentivised.