New refuse scheme for Wicklow will be pay by weight

The State's first regular, door-to-door, pay-by-weight refuse collection is to be introduced in County Wicklow early next year.

The pay-by-weight pilot project, which is being encouraged by the Department of the Environment, is an extension of the "polluter pays" principle, in that those who create the most waste should pay the most refuse charges.

Wicklow County Council's director of environmental services, Mr Michael Nicholson - who is spearheading the councils' action against illegal dumping - has welcomed the move. It is being introduced by the Celtic waste subsidiary, Noble Waste Management.

According to Mr Nicholson, the move can save householders money on refuse charges, while cleaning up the county.

A spokeswoman for Celtic Waste said the refuse collection service would be introduced initially for shops and businesses, probably in the large towns of Bray and Greystones, early next year, but it was hoped to extend it to households shortly afterwards.

The system is relatively easy to manage and works successfully in other European countries, where the wheelie bin is weighed as it is lifted by refuse trucks.

In another development, Wicklow County Council has become the first local authority to sign up to Repak's new bring-bank recycling.

The scheme is different from previous local authority recycling efforts in that it is funded by Repak, which, in turn, is funded by industry. It is a separate scheme from the smaller, on-street recycling banks introduced in Dublin earlier this month.

A typical bring-bank recycling site consists of five separate bulk banks for glass, plastic, steel or aluminium cans. They are provided and funded by Repak but operated by the local authority or contractors operating on behalf of the local authority.

Opening the first recycling bank in Wicklow Town, the council said its ambition was to meet the European target of one site per 1,000 population.

The council intends to establish more than 30 new sites over the next year, an increase of 60 per cent in the number of sites, bringing the total number of recycling centres in the county to about 80. Last year householders in Wicklow recycled just 18 per cent of their waste.

Mr Nicholson said the initiative was vital, as the council's main dump at Ballymurtagh, near Avoca, is due to close next December.

While the council has another dump in West Wicklow, capacity there is limited.

Wicklow County Council was one of five finalists nominated for the Local Authority Recycling Initiatives 2002, for its mobile collection scheme for plastics, newspapers and textiles.

Mr Nicholson, on behalf of the council, was presented with a framed certificate of merit by the Minister for the Environment Mr Cullen last week.