Séamus Healy (Tipperary, Workers and Unemployed Action Group) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Bill and compliment the Green Party and the Labour Party on bringing it forward and confirm my support for it. It is a short but significant and important Bill. Section 3 will ban the sale or free distribution of non-compostable tableware, while section 4 will introduce a deposit and return scheme for beverage containers.

Plastic pollution is everywhere. According to the United Nations, 8 million tonnes of plastic leak into the oceans every year, the equivalent of dumping a truckload every minute into the sea. Ireland produces approximately 210,000 tonnes of plastic each year. In its report in 2013, the Environmental Protection Agency found that only 40% of plastic was recycled. According to the national waste report of 2011, 52.5% of all plastic packaging waste went directly into landfill. The measures contained in the Bill will, of course, not solve the waste plastic problem, but they will make a significant contribution to a solution. Deposit and return schemes are a proven way to reduce littering and increase recycling. Schemes are operated successfully in other European countries and have led to a reduction in the level of plastic pollution and littering. It is noteworthy that refillable glass bottles can be used 50 times and refillable polyethylene terephthalate, PET, bottles approximately 15 times. I believe the public will respond positively to the measures contained in the Bill and look forward to its passage through the Oireachtas in a timely fashion.

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