LATEST NEWS FROM CLEAN IRELAND

New Brown Bin Service 7th September 2009

Duncan Stewart and Clean Ireland Recycling all set for Separate Food Waste Collections

The presenter of RTE’s television series Eco Eye and one of Ireland’s leading providers of waste management and recycling services have joined forces to get the message out.

• Firstly, Waste Service Providers are now obliged by LAW to provide a separate food waste collection service to householders in highly populated areas. – IT’S THE LAW;
• Secondly, using the right food waste collection service will help you save money;
• Thirdly, and just as importantly, doing all of the above is good for the environment. 
  

Okay. Talking about waste disposal is not glamorous. It’s important, however, to do things properly. E.U. environmental regulation states that Ireland must reduce the amount of organic material sent to landfill. When this organic material is in our landfills, it releases harmful greenhouse gases such as Methane and Carbon Dioxide which contribute to global warming. Also, the liquids (known as leachate) that seep into the ground are extremely harmful to ground water supplies.

This year sees new legislation that requires we divert all organic material from our landfills. What does all this mean? As a householder, you are no longer permitted to dispose of your food and garden waste in your regular waste bin. You must use a separate bin, and a separate collection service.

The good news is, obeying this law won’t be a bother nor an extra expense. John O’Donoghue of Clean Ireland Recycling explains:  ‘Clean Ireland Recycling is now offering customers a food waste collection service, or brown bin service. This service will not only be free and easy to use; it will also allow you to save money. Approximately 40% of what’s in your waste bin (by weight) is actually organic waste. With a separate collection, it has been proven that householders actually reduce the amount of food waste created. And food waste collected separately is not subject to landfill tax, so you will be saving money in that way as well. Both existing and new customers will discover that using our brown bin service will lead to smaller waste disposal bills.’

TV celebrity and environmental guru Duncan Stewart has been helping Clean Ireland Recycling spread the word. ‘Separating our recyclable material from our waste material has been very successful in helping us sustain our environment and reduce carbon emissions that contribute to global warming,’ he remarks. ‘If collected separately, food waste material can be composted into a very useful fertiliser for soil conditioning and land reclamation. It can also be put through a more modern process known as anaerobic digestion. This process harnesses the useful bio-gas that is emitted during the degradation process and uses it to power generators, which in turn create electricity.  This very effective use of what was once your food and garden waste further contributes towards reducing our carbon footprints, as we become less reliant on fossil fuels like coal and oil for power generation.’

For more details, call Clean Ireland Recycling at 1890 361800 or visit www.cleanireland.ie.