THE MINISTER WITH responsibility for the circular economy has said he is working to roll out ‘washing stations’ in garages and large coffee chains as part of efforts to encourage more people to use reusable cups. 

Minister of State Alan Dillon said he has instructed his officials to look at rolling out a pilot scheme.

He said the move will be made in tandem with other measures to reduce the use of single-use coffee cups, including the rollout of the long-promised “latte levy”.

“We’ve looked at how we actually introduce this and how we can engage with retail and forecourt operators, such as Circle K or many other chain operators -  the Costas, the Insomnias, etc, -  to try and implement that infrastructure,” the Mayo TD said. 

However, Dillon would not give a timeline on when the washing stations or the tax on single-use cups would be up and running.

Coffee cups are among the most prevalent forms of litter in Ireland, with the government’s own circular economy strategy (published earlier this year) stating that roughly 22,000 disposable takeaway cups are discarded every hour in Ireland. 

That adds up to over 500,000 cups a day or 200 million cups annually, with most ending up in landfill, incineration or as coastal litter where they break down into microplastics.

Despite the most recent strategy from the government committing to tackle the issue, progress to date has been slow, and the pledge to tax single-use cups was even dropped from the 2024 programme for government.

Meanwhile, in April, the European Commission sent the government a letter of formal notice over its failure to transpose a number of elements of the single-use plastics directive. 

On the “latte levy”, which the government initially promised to introduce in 2020, Dillon told The Journal that a regulatory assessment on how it would be implemented is currently ongoing and that the government is still looking at it as a “longer-term solution”.

The Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment said last month that it is considering the option of an upstream levy on producers and importers of disposable cups, rather than at the point of sale to consumers. 

Dillon said he favours option number two: a tax at the point of sale.

“I think if we were looking at a point of sale where consumers actually feel the impact of a levy at the till, that certainly would be more transparent,” he said.

 He added, however, that a tax on cups cannot be the only solution and that people need to be encouraged to use their own reusable cups, with “widespread infrastructure available” for cleaning.

Pushed on a timeline for the introduction of the levy, Dillon said: “I think what’s important is to get it right.

“I don’t think it’s as simple as introducing what we did previously for the plastic bag, and this needs to be thought through. It’s very difficult.”

He said coffee has become a “very expensive pastime” for people now, and any scheme will have to be rolled out in a way that is actually effective rather than just raising prices further. 

Clothing waste

As the circular economy junior minister, Dillon is also responsible for textile waste. 

He told The Journal there is “no glossing over” the fact that around 65% of used textiles are not recycled and continue to end up in general waste.

“Ireland is one of the highest consumers of textiles in Europe,” Dillon said, noting that much of the waste is exported overseas and that the big problem is that it is “very difficult” to recycle clothing. 

“That’s why we want to introduce an alternative in terms of supporting reuse, repair, and social enterprises. Especially around retail, charity shops, and that network that’s currently established around the country,” he said. 

Dillon noted that it is “a systemic EU-wide issue” and said work is being done at an EU level, via extended producer responsibility schemes, to ensure producers of cheap and unsustainable clothes are responsible for paying the true cost of what they make.

“The model is changing, and cheap disposable clothing will no longer be the cheapest option once producers pay the true cost of actually manufacturing them and selling them,” he said.

Dillon said the National Repair Voucher Scheme, which is currently being worked on by the Department of Climate, will help drive people towards repairing things like shoes, handbags and clothing.

The scheme aims to reduce repair costs and increase the perceived value of used devices.

It is due to be rolled out next year.