A potential €180 million a year from a levy introduced today is one amount the Government hopes will never be raised.
The 15 cent levy on plastic carrier bags, to be paid by customers from today, could bring in millions in revenue but the scheme will only be a complete success when not one cent goes into the coffers.
The levy will be paid at the point of sale and apply to plastic carrier bags. They will be noted as an extra item on the till receipt.
It is hoped that the scheme will be such a success that nobody will want plastic bags ever again and will instead use reusable shopping bags, paper carriers or even return to traditional wicker baskets.
So the ugly sight of plastic bags blowing around the streets, caught on trees, defacing the countryside could be a thing of the past.
With an estimated 1.2 billion plastic bags being handed out on an annual basis until now, the potential could be €180 million for the Department of the Environment.
However, a Department spokesman said: "This is one revenue that the Government is hoping actually won't be achieved. The whole purpose is that we hope it won't be anywhere near this amount."
Any money that comes from the levy will be used for environmental purposes. Although nothing has been decided, it could be put into environmental awareness and litter campaigns.
The spokesman said: "The levy made on plastic bags is absolutely guaranteed to go exclusively to the environment."
Supermarkets, stores and shops such as Tesco, Dunnes, Superquinn, Brown Thomas are making contingency plans and offering alternatives to customers.
At Dunnes Stores, for example, where 200 million plastic bags were being issued every year, the traditional green plastic bags are to be replaced by paper bags in three sizes in the textile and clothing departments. There will be no charge for those.
On the food side, the 15 cent levy will be on the white plastic carrier bags. Customers, though, will be able to buy heavy duty reusable plastic bags at 30 cents. There will also be a mesh-type longer-life bag for €1.
Tesco, which issued 220 million plastic bags a year, has introduced Bags for Life. The heavy-duty bags are €1.26 and €1 along with the usual reusable bag at 13 cents.
Tesco estimates that the levy will reduce the number of bags provided by at least 40 per cent in the first year - a saving of 88 million bags from Tesco customers alone.