Recycling target of 37,000 tonnes for Christmas

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

This Christmas, Repak is aiming to collect over 37,000 tonnes of used packaging — around 55% of what is produced at this time of year.

Households generate 25% more used packaging over the festive period than at any other time of the year.

Last year, Repak funded the recycling of 36,500 tonnes of used packaging over the Christmas period — a 7% increase over 2010.

There has been a six-fold growth in Christmas recycling since 2001 when the country was only recycling 31,000 tonnes of used household packaging over the entire year.

Head of sales and marketing at Repak, Darrell Crowe said the growth in the recycling of used packaging was due to people embracing the idea of recycling.

Mr Crowe said recycling this Christmas could save 46,000 tonnes of carbon from being released into the atmosphere — the equivalent of taking 29,900 cars off the road.

Repack is urging people to bring any excess packaging to their local recycling centre.

Mr Crowe said people could find the opening hours of their local recycling centre using Repak’s Recyclemore app.

Repak developed the app when it discovered that 62% of people turned up at a recycling centre to find it closed.

Rehab Glassco is also urging people to make an extra effort over Christmas to recycle their glass and aluminium cans at local bring sites.

The company said it would have more collection vehicles operating to meet seasonal demand.

People who bought Christmas trees can recycle them at designated Christmas tree recycling centres around the country.

* www.recyclemore.ie

* www.rehabglassco.ie