Transcript Philip Nugent - Department of the Environment

Food Waste Regulations – Experience in
Ireland
Philip Nugent
Principal
Waste Policy and Resource Efficiency
Dept. of the Environment, Community & Local Government
Ireland
Presentation Structure
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Main focus on commercial food waste regs
Background / context
Overview of content and objectives
Parallel measures Programme for Government
Impacts
Lessons learned, enforcement approaches
Next steps
Commercial Food Waste Regs – Background
and context
• 2007 PfG Commitments
• National Strategy on Biodegradable Waste
• Minister – more segregation, restrict bio waste material going to landfill,
including food waste
• Pre-consultation on food waste instrument – early 2009
• Main issues:
 Costs / admin burden
 Infrastructure capacity
 De minimis threshold
 Enforcement
• Draft Regulations published August 2009 for further consultation
• Development of awareness
2009 Regs – Content and Objectives
• Signed December 2009, effective 1 July 2010
• Designed to:
 Promote segregation and beneficial use of food waste arising in the
commercial sector
 Increase amount of food waste that is recovered
 Facilitate achievement of targets
• Obligations on generators of food waste to segregate and make
available for separate collection or
• Treat on premises under specified conditions
• Initially appled to premises producing 50kg per week of food waste –
de minimus rule
• Sunset on 1 July 2011 – thereafter all scheduled premises were
covered
Application – What types of premises are
covered?
• What types of premises are included?
• Such as…
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Pubs
Restaurants / cafes / bistros / wine bars
Hotels / guest houses
Shops / supermarkets
Hospitals / nursing homes
Educational institutions
State buildings
Canteens
Stations (airports, ports, harbours, marinas, train stations)
• Do not apply to other commercial or industrial activities such as food
manufacturing other than canteens etc.
Exemptions / de minimus rule
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Initially confined to >50kg
All scheduled premises
Where source-segregation is imposed
Producers < 50kg required to claim exemption by 1 July 2010
Expired 1 July 2011
Alignment with ABP legislation
Off-shore islands exempt
Segregation and processing obligations
• No conflict with food safety and hygiene standards
• Requirement to segregate food waste from non-biodegradable
materials, other waste and contaminants
• Once segregated, food waste must be either:
 Collected by an authorised waste collector and transferred for
treatment – no incineration!
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 Subject to authorised treatment process on-premises
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 Transferred directly by producer to facility for authorised
treatment
• Minimise odours and nuisance
Handling and prohibition on contamination
• Mixing of food waste with contaminants prohibited
• Prevents making food waste unsuitable for composting or
diminishing quality of end product
• Exception for disposal waste which competent authority
considers unsuitable for beneficial use arising from
authorised treatment process
Segregated collection service
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Obligation to avail of source-segregated collection where available
Deposition of food waste as residual waste is prohibited
Treatment of macerators
Need to restrict load going to sewers and sewage treatment works
Polluter pays principle
Collectors not obliged to collect where producer is non-compliant or to
accept non-segregated waste
• Collectors also required to inform LA where producers fail to avail of
collection service
• Dealers / brokers / recovery operators – obligation to supply
information.
Other important provisions
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Power to require submission of information
Offences
Liability
Trade shows and food waste management plans
Some important definitions
 Authorised facility
 Authorised waste collector
 Authorised treatment process
 Producer
Awareness Raising / Stakeholder Engagement
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2 consultation processes
www.foodwaste.ie
Advisory Committee
Trade magazine articles
Factsheets
Plain English guide
FAQs
Media advertisements – national and local / regional papers
8 Regional workshops for Restaurant of Ireland of Ireland Members
Outcomes
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Economic performance and waste streams
Commercial waste significantly down since 2007
Large proportion is biodegradable
Good for the achievement of diversion targets but conceals full picture
Closer inspection suggests not yet effecting behavioural change….
306,578
(tonnes available commercial organic waste)
-75,857 (estimated source separated commercial organic waste)
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230,721 tonnes
• Only 25% collection
(EPA 2011, National Waste Report 2011)
Outcomes cont’d
• Waste processors – optimistic ahead of introduction, investment
decisions made but expectations not fully realised
• Waste producers – reduced costs through avoided landfill levy,
incentivised to reduce and prevent food waste
• Enforcement critical
• Overall compliance disappointing but some good examples
Dublin City Council – Enforcement Approach
• 2,300 food service establishments (FSE) in DCC required to hold a
licence to discharge trade effluent under the fats oils and grease (FOG)
programme
• Inspections carried out by FOG team of inspectors
• Inspections now cover compliance with Food Waste Regulations
• Initially many excuses given as to why food segregation was not
occurring
• Importance reinforced through continuous inspections
• Each inspection used as a means to educate and train FSE owners and
staff
• 12 month period - compliance up from 6.5% to 39%
Fingal County Council – Enforcement
Approach
DoECLG Big Stick Approach
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DoECLG selected 5 local authorities at random
Friendly visits – compliance record on food waste regs
Enforcement activities funded from the Environment Fund
Allocations normally made in February / March
Threat to withhold until certain steps taken
Where next?
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Focus on enforcement
Further evolution of enforcement structures
Mainstream identified best practices
Further information / awareness raising
Incentivise good performance
Fixed payment notices
Thank you
www.environ.ie
Philip Nugent
Waste Policy and Resource Efficiency
Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government,
Newtown Road,
Wexford
Ireland
Telephone: +(353) (0)53 9117396
[email protected]
Some Useful Websites
• www.environ.ie
Ireland’s Department of the Environment,
Community and Local Government
• www.epa.ie
Environmental Protection Agency
• www.foodwaste.ie