Waste management and prevention

EPA licenses major waste facilities, and these licenses are enforced by our Office of Environmental Enforcement. Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) licensed activities are also obliged to prevent or minimise waste generation.

The management of municipal and other waste is provided for in Regional Waste Management Plans prepared by local authorities.

Hazardous waste is provided for in the National Hazardous Waste Management Plan prepared by the EPA.

As part of the Waste Prevention, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) quantifies waste from a wide range of activities in Ireland in our National Waste Reports.

National policy

Ireland's national policy on waste is detailed in the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government's documents:

Changing Our Ways
Delivering Change
Taking Stock And Moving Forward

The Waste Prevention has initiated a range of projects aimed at waste prevention in Ireland. A range of initiatives is also under way to involve producers in managing waste packaging and waste arising from their commercial activities.