Waste plan ‘targets cannot be acheived’

A FIVE-YEAR waste management plan for a region covering Limerick (city and county), Clare and Kerry, launched yesterday, contains incineration targets, which the compilers of the plan admit cannot be achieved.

The Draft Replacement Waste Management Plan for the region 2005 to 2010 sets out an objective of thermally treating (incinerating) 41% of waste.

But during a question and answer session at the plan launch in Limerick, Tom Enright, director of services with Limerick County Council said there would not be thermal treatment in region in the next five years, the period covered by the plan.

And, he said, it would be wrong to put the issue of thermal treatment up front at this stage as the focus will be on reducing and recycling waste material.

Larry O’Toole of consultants RPSMCOS told officials and councillors the five-year-plan recognises the requirement for a thermal treatment plant for the region.

He said that as the four councils involved in the plan now collect 30% of waste material, policies can only be drawn up in consultation with the private sector.

A member of Limerick City Council, Cllr Jim Long said: “A thermal treatment plant for the region will follow as sure as night follows day and the local authorities should be partners. If we hand over such a plant to the private sector it would be a doomsday situation. It can work, but the local authorities must control it and the public must be brought on board.”

The new Waste Management Plan 2005 to 2010 sets a 45% recycling target and a reduction of the amount of waste material brought to landfill to 14%.

In order to assess the performance of the plan, an annual report will be measured against a set of Key Performance Indicators.

The Draft Waste Plan will be on display until December 12 in public buildings and online at www.managewaste.ie.

Representations can be sent to Regional Waste Management Office, Dooradoyle, Co Limerick or to [e-mail] and must arrive before 4pm on December 12.