Better recycling would save €3m annually in waste fees

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.

Research for Repak has found that recycling better would save around €3m annually in land fees and levies. Up to 30% of green bins are contaminated with stuff that is not meant to be in it — clothes, nappies, food, garden waste and glass.

Last year, household used packaging recycled by Repak increased by 8%, with 55% collected through green bin systems.