Throwing money away: millions of euros are buried in landfills each year
The report, which was commissioned by packaging management group Repak, said 800 million plastic drinks bottles were currently being sent to landfill, representing more than 35,000 tonnes of material. This material could be worth up to €5 million if recycled but instead attracted a bill of €38 million in landfill costs.
Andrew Simmons of British recycling organisation Recoup told Repak’s annual members’ conference that plastic was a valuable material and that Ireland was well placed to recycle, with a large recycling plant in Co Meath that could handle three times the amount of plastic bottles generated here each year.
