This is the day many of us will access the Christmas aftermath, focusing our efforts on packing away the decorations for next year and carting the tree to a recycling facility.

Am I part of the Government’s greenwashing campaign?

It was just two or three years ago when it first hit me hard that I have to change how I live; that we all do, for the sake of this planet. We have to start taking care of it. That way it’ll be somewhere our kids and theirs can live normally in the future, as we do today.

Ireland has achieved its highest ever rate of recycling, surpassing all EU recycling targets, Repak reports.

Ireland has achieved its highest ever rate of recycling, surpassing all EU recycling targets, Repak reports.

No way is it enough to focus on recycling the plastic we produce. We have got to produce less plastic, writes Victoria White

More than 17m Easter eggs were consumed in Ireland last year, according to recycling industry body Repak, which is encouraging the public to learn where to dispose of their packing this weekend.

What is Environment Minister Denis Naughten’s problem with deposit-refunds on bottles, cans and plastic bottles, and a ban on cups and tableware that can’t be composted or used again?

Two of our world’s conflicting but defining forces — the growing threat of climate destruction and the mountains of polluting waste generated by our relentless consumerism — collided yesterday when it was announced that An Bord Pleanála (ABP) granted planning permission for a controversial €160m Indaver waste incinerator in Cork Harbour.

As Easter approaches most of us are looking forward to a weekend of indulgence centred on chocolate.

Levies imposed on motorists to curb illegal dumping of car tyres may not be extended to truck owners, farmers, and builders, as was previously planned. There are complaints the scheme is flawed and will actually cause dumping.

THERE are barely three weeks left before Christmas reaches a climax. The idea that our great midwinter festival is confined to just a few days drowned in a tsunami of consumerism many years ago. One of the collateral consequences of our rapacious buying — even if it may be a bah-humbug one — is an ever-growing mountain of packaging waste.

The number of landfills in Ireland has decreased from 126 to just four.

Worth about €11bn annually, the Irish agri-food and drinks export industry has experienced a boom in recent years, thanks to a rise in global demand.

Kehlan Kirwan talks with Dylan Regan, creator of the VirtueBrush, a toothbrush made from bamboo and charcoal nylon, created to answer the environmental question of plastic toothbrushes and their impact on our land and seas.

Trying to survive without purchasing plastic for a month proved tough for Ellie O’Byrne and those who want us to cut down on using it for environmental reasons must find cheaper alternatives.

Most people associate Easter with eating too much chocolate, not with the Easter Rising centenary commemoration.

From rags to riches, from trash to flash — this year’s Junk Kouture final was, as ever, a sight to behold.

Half of us will drink alcohol and eat red meat today – Good Friday.

A chief executive received more than £1m in unauthorised salary bonuses and pension payments, it has been claimed in the High Court.

Novelty underpants, dubious-smelling perfume sets and chick-lit novels are just some of the most ‘rubbish’ presents that will be given this Christmas.

Contamination of our recycling bins is becoming more widespread, according to new survey from Repak.

This Christmas, Irish households will exchange over 12 million gifts in cardboard and paper packaging that would fill 647 articulated trucks.

BOY do we know how to party at Christmas — Irish people gobble some five million boxes of chocolates, glug 49m bottles of beer and 20m soft drinks and distribute an estimated 12m gifts over the festive season.

Poor recycling could be adding to the price of bin charges, a waste industry body has claimed.

Almost one million tonnes of recyclable material is wasted every year because of people putting rubbish or dirty recyclables in green bins, it has emerged.

With more than 35,000 tonnes of used packaging expected to be generated by households over Easter, Repak is urging people to be a good egg and recycle as much of the waste as possible.

’Tis the season when 70,000 tonnes of packaging waste will be generated by households.

A public appetite for a warts-and-all banking inquiry is growing.

When it comes to recycling habits, Ireland is ranked seventh out of 27 EU countries.

Used packaging recycled last year equalled the carbon savings involved in taking over 250,000 cars off Irish roads.

Irish households will generate 32,000 tonnes of used packaging over the Easter period — nearly 70% of the Titanic’s weight.

The amount of used packaging generated by Irish households over the Easter period equates to 70% of the weight of the Titanic, according to Repak Ireland.

Brands including Baileys and Thorntons have been criticised as the worst for using recyclable products in their Easter egg packaging.

THE turkey is finished. All the presents are opened.

THE green jobs initiative spearheaded by the GAA is developing momentum after a successful launch in Clonakilty six weeks ago.