Irish householders are set to pay an extra €44 million for the additional waste generated at Christmas if they don't recycle, according to research by Repak.
Tagged bins awaiting collection - Additional Christmas waste could cost and extra EUR44m
The average household produces almost one-third more waste, or 95,000 tonnes, at Christmas, adding up to €34 to their bill for sending refuse to landfill.
The study also showed that women aged between 35 and 44 are over a third more likely than men to regularly recycle. Single people produce 275 per cent more waste than an individual from a four person household.
Chief executive of Repak, Andrew Hetherington said: "This addition to our waste bill could unexpectedly hit all our pockets as it's the first Christmas since pay-by-weight and pay-by-use was introduced. We produce a staggering 30 per cent additional used packaging over the Christmas period thanks to our ever-increasing "Tiger Economy" appetite for presents and parties."
The release of the findings coincides with the launch of the Repak Green Christmas campaign today, which aims to encourage people to recyle their used packaging such as plastic bottles, aluminium cans, cardboard, glass and beverage cartons.
In addition, Repak and local authorities around the country have set up 90 special Repak Green Christmas Centres. Some of the 420,000 Christmas trees expected to be sold this year can also be recycled at specially designated centres around the country.
Visit www.repak.ie for details of local recycling centres