THE DEPARTMENT OF the Environment has said that incineration has a “role to play” in Ireland, both for treating waste and providing energy.

A discussion document released by the department today, entitled Towards a New National Waste Policy, has classed Ireland’s dependence on landfills as “unacceptably high” and called for more discussion about country’s future waste policy – particularly in relation to “residual waste that cannot be recycled or reused”.

In a statement released yesterday, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Phil Hogan TD, said that the document was designed to promote discussion and debate and “provide an opportunity for all interested parties to input into the development of a policy framework that will shape our approach to waste management for the next decade and beyond”.

Hogan added: “I am anxious also to receive the views of the public and those businesses and other organisations which are customers of waste services. The discussion document is not prescriptive – instead it sets out a range of possible policy initiatives and issues for wider consideration and presents a real opportunity for interested parties to contribute to shaping a new national waste policy.”

How do you feel about incineration? Let us know in our poll.

Poll: Does incineration have a ‘role to play’ in Ireland?