Ireland faces EU fines as waste production rises while recycling rate stagnant over a decade

The data is the latest from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) which says the country is failing or stalling on the three key waste-prevention goals of reduce, reuse and recycle.

A total of 15.7 million tonnes of waste, the equivalent of 8kg per person, was generated in a single year – an increase of 20pc in 10 years.

All of that had to be collected, ­sorted and disposed of in incinerators, recycling facilities or landfills in Ireland or abroad.

The biggest single source of waste is the construction industry which ­accounts for half of all the waste generated in the country.

Municipal waste – the ordinary day-to-day bin content from homes, ­offices, businesses and schools – is another major component, accounting for 3.2 million tonnes.

About 41pc of that was recycled, but 43pc was incinerated and 15pc went to landfill – the least environmentally ­responsible form of waste management. The 41pc recycling rate is no improvement on 10 years earlier.

One startling statistic is the proportion of households with brown bins for food and organic waste which decreased from 69pc to 66pc.

The figures are from 2022, however, and pre-date new regulations introduced last year that oblige waste-collection companies to provide all households with brown bins.

Ireland’s progress towards a circular economy is stalling

Packaging waste – mainly paper, cardboard and plastic – has not reduced, accounting for 1.2m tonnes of waste.

More than half, 60pc, of the total was recycled, but just 32pc of the plastic packaging among it was recycled.

Some 30,680 tonnes of the 1.2 ­million tonnes of packaging waste was single-use plastic bottles, of which 49pc were collected for recycling.

The impact of the Deposit Return Scheme, which came into effect this year, will be measured in future reports and may see that figure improve.

Overall, the statistics show serious challenges in turning the country towards a “circular economy” where all materials for manufacture and packaging are continually reused or recycled.

David Flynn, director of the EPA’s ­office of environmental ­sustainability, said the current economic model is wasteful.

“Ireland’s progress towards a circular economy is stalling,” he said. “Current measures to prevent waste, to promote reuse and to encourage recycling are not enough to meet mandatory municipal waste and plastic packaging targets.

“The challenge for Ireland is to ­reverse these trends and significantly reduce waste production and increase reuse and recycling.”

The report also highlights the fact that Ireland cannot cope with all the waste it produces, having to send 1.2m tonnes of municipal waste overseas for disposal, while hazardous and specialist waste was also sent abroad.

As well as putting unwarranted pressure on the environment, the country’s waste habits will also land it in trouble with the EU.

To avoid fines, municipal waste recycling – currently at 41pc – must be at 55pc by next year.

Packaging waste recycling is currently at 60pc and must reach 65pc, while plastic packaging recycling – currently at 32pc – must be increased to 50pc.