Some local authorities' success in living the recycling creed has shown the public that the mission can be extended with good effect to every community. Iva Pocock reports
The story of Irish waste is predominantly bad news: on average, every Irish resident is producing 60 per cent more waste than they were in 1995; of that, only 12 per cent is recycled - and the Environmental Protection Agency estimates licensed landfill capacity will run out within five years.
But there is good news.
Throughout the Republic, local authority environmental education officers are spreading a new message and nurturing innovative waste reduction programmes, helping to develop a culture of reducing, reusing and recycling.
Four years ago more progressive local authorities started recycling waste created in its main buildings before spreading the practice to area offices, fire stations and libraries.
"There was no point in telling the general public to reduce their waste if we weren't reducing ours," explains Ms Maura Byrne, environmental education officer with Wicklow County Council.
More than 80 per cent of all waste, she says, is now recycled, including white and mixed paper, cardboard, laser cartridges, plastic films, wooden pallets, metals and compostables.
"Most people don't have a non-specific bin beside their desk now. It has become second nature to recycle everything," Ms Byrne adds. "The compostable waste from our canteen goes to the wormery and we don't buy individually packed sugar, salt, jam or butter."
"In the machinery yard the workmen try to reuse as much material as possible. For example, we're moving office at the moment and have used two old doors and doorframes again to make a new door and archway."
She is particularly complimentary about the area office in Blessington, which, she says, achieves almost 100 per cent recycling.
"They shred all their paper waste for use as greyhound bedding. Ultimately it ends up being composted. They try consciously not to buy anything that'll create waste. For example, they won't buy coffee unless it's in a glass jar."
In terms of promoting reuse and recycling among businesses (especially office-based ones) and the community in Co Wicklow, the in-house efforts of the local authority have made a significant difference.
"It makes a huge difference in that staff talk to their family and friends, helping to create an ethos of recycling."
Wicklow's environmental education officer sees a double benefit in home composting: "When the 'rubbish fairy' no longer takes away the bin at the door, people start registering the amount of rubbish that they create."
In Co Kilkenny, 2,500 residents will have registered how much organic waste they produce since investing in a composter supplied by the county council's home composting programme. In Limerick, city council home composting units are available to city householders for the subsidised cost of €20.
"Over 400 units have been sold in the last four weeks. The scheme encourages householders to compost their organic waste at home - reducing the amount of waste going out in the household bin each week," explains Ms Sinead McDonnell, environmental education officer with the city council.
In Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown a recycling park and composting facility is being developed at Ballyogan. When completed in 2003, it will enable the public to bring a wide variety of materials for recycling, including all dry recyclables and green waste.
In Kilkenny, the county council has almost quadrupled the number of bring sites in the county since September 2001.
"This makes us almost two or three years ahead of target," explains Ms Sadhbh O'Neill, Kilkenny's environmental education officer. Despite the levels of landfill diversion in rural areas and small cities being a "drop in the ocean" compared to Galway and Dublin which have "kerbside" collection, she is optimistic about meeting waste targets on a national scale.
"We are getting there."