As a country, we are currently a long way behind our European
partners in all areas of recycling. It is hoped that with
the continued positive example being set up by private enterprise,
local authorities and Repak, Ireland can put itself at the
forefront of recycling in Europe, in much the same way as
it has done in other industries.
The natural resources of our planet are finite and we are
consuming them with alacrity. Recycling helps to eke out
our diminishing resources; it also makes fewer demands on
our energy requirements.
The biggest and most difficult problem which we all face
and are all in a position to do something about is waste.
Ireland has long relied on landfill as the main method of
disposing waste. However in the last 15 years, the amount
of waste dumped in landfills in Ireland increased by nearly
one third. As landfills fill up and environmental concerns
about them grow, we must face up to the fact that they are
no longer the primary waste management solution.
Old landfills can cause problems. Water passing through
the site may pick up soluble chemicals and products of decay,
which can pollute streams and underground water reserves
if it escapes. Landfill sites also attract rats, gulls and
flies, and produce smells and windblown litter.
DID YOU KNOW?
- It takes and average of 17/20 fully-grown trees to
make one tonne of paper.
- There are approx. 80 /100 boxes of paper to the tonne.
- The average family throws away in one year: 6 trees
worth of paper
- Each year we throw away around 10 times our own weight
in rubbish.
Figures show that in 1998, 15 million tonnes of non-agricultural
waste was produced in Ireland. The breakdown of this was
as follows:
Manufacturing 4.9 million
Mining/Quarrying 5.5 million
Construction/Demolition 2.7 million
Municipal 2.1 million
Municipal waste has doubled since the mid-1980’S. The overall
recovery rate for packaging waste was 14.8% in 1998.
In 1998, it is estimated that 8,780,201 tonnes of waste
were consigned to landfill.
1,852,450 tonnes of household and commercial waste was collected
in 1998.
The national recovery rate for household and commercial
waste in 1998 was 9% (166,684 tonnes) with 91% 91,685,766)
consigned to landfill.
