PRESS RELEASE 15 March 2005
Greens
call for smarter Waste Charges in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown
The
Green Party has called on Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown to 'clean up its act' on
waste charges in the County.
They
have called on the County Manager to introduce changes in how the County handles
its waste. In a ten-point submission to the County Manager Derek Brady, the
Party has called for reforms to make it easier for people to reduce, re-use and
recycle.
Local
TD and Green Party Spokesperson on the Environment Ciarán Cuffe stated:
"People
want to improve the environment, but nobody wants to be stuck in a line of
traffic queuing up to enter the Ballyogan Recycling Park. The changes outlined
in our submission would make the system fairer and encourage more recycling."
Green
Party Councillor Ciarán Fallon stated:
"We
also want changes in the charges. The current system forces people into
giving the local authority an interest free loan. We believe that the Council
should move away from demanding payment in advance for waste charges. If the ESB
did this there would be uproar!"
ENDS
(ten point plan below)
Green Party Ten Point
Plan for Waste Management in Dún Laoghaire
Reduced
payment for smaller bin
All householders on the wheelie bin service should be given the choice of a
120-litre bin instead of the standard 240-litre bin. This bin should have a
reduced annual charge.
Parity
of charges in the Metropolitan Area
The four Dublin Local
Authorities should meet under the auspices of the Dublin Regional Authority and
co-ordinate a uniform charging system for the four Dublin Councils.
Change
from payment in advance to billing once service received
The
Council should move away from demanding payment in advance for waste charges. If
the ESB did this there would be uproar! Retrospective payments are the norm for
other utilities. The current system forces
people into giving the local authority an interest free loan.
Better
Green Bin Service
Consider a fortnightly Green Bin collection if levels of recycling remain high.
Investigate the collection of plastics using the Green Bin service. All
households without a Green Bin should receive two large biodegradable clear
recycling bags per month.
Better
information for Householders
Supply an information leaflet including a map of recycling points within each
neighbourhood to every household in the County. Provide improved information
online.
End
the flat charge for those on bag collections
Householders that still receive a bag collection should be offered a charge per
bag option rather than a flat charge of €350 a year.
More
Bring Centres
The amount of Bring Centres in the county must be doubled so that most
neighbourhoods have recycling within walking distance. All bring banks should be
cleaned regularly, and have notices advising users not to use the bins at
night-time so that adjoining residents are not disturbed. The bottle-bins should
have also internal rubber straps to dampen the noise made by bottles as is
commonplace in mainland Europe.
Reinstate
the Dún Laoghaire Recycling Depot
Full
recycling facilities should be reinstated in the town of Dún Laoghaire to
replace the facility that was removed when the Council sold off the site at the
back of 'Iceland' off Georges Street.
Full
disclosure of costs
The Council should make available a full breakdown of the costings for all
aspects of their Waste Management proposals such as refuse freighter costs, and
wages, including capital and current expenditure.
Enforcement
and fines
Increase fines and enforcement for littering and unauthorised dumping offences.
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