Homes and businesses in Dublin city are now recycling one-fifth of their waste, according to the latest figures from the city council.
The 126,000 houses and 10,000 businesses served by Dublin City Council's refuse collectors generated over 200,000 tonnes of waste in 2003, of which 40,000 tonnes were recycled.
The figures were in the council's first annual waste report, which also showed that 25,000 tonnes of street litter was collected by the council last year.
Half of this litter, according to the council's report, was made up of cigarette butts, with millions of discarded cigarettes swept up each week.
However, according to city council officials, there was no evidence to date of an increase in littering due to the indoor smoking ban.
The council is now spending nearly 23 million on street-cleaning services. This involves the washing and sweeping of over 2,400 kilometres of footpaths and bridges, along with the emptying of 5,000 litter bins every day.
In the last year, the council spent an additional 4 million on its street-sweeping service, employing 50 extra staff.
This has led to an extra street-sweeping shift in the afternoon in the city centre so that the city is cleaned constantly from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m.
This was done following a survey last year to identify litter blackspots in the city centre, according to Mr Matt Twomey, the assistant city manager in charge of waste services.
"The surveys showed that there was a high degree of cleanliness in the morning to around lunchtime, and at night, but there was a particular problem in the afternoon and early evenings. The new shift is up and running now, and it's making a huge difference."
Overall, the council is spending 72.7 million on waste collection and disposal in the city.
Unlike many other areas in the country, the waste collection service is still heavily subsidised, according to the report.
The city council spent nearly 41 million on household waste collection last year, which translates into an average cost of €319 per home. The actual charges, however, range from €110 to 195 depending on bin size.
The council now operates two recycling centres and 11 bring centres in the city region. There are also over 100 bottle banks.
The council has set ambitious targets to increase recycling rates to 49 per cent over the next three years, and to 69 per cent by 2009.
The council plans to introduce a "pay by volume" system next year as part of a new national policy on waste announced last month.