COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
MEETING OF TALLAGHT AREA COMMITTEE
Monday, June 25, 2018
MOTION NO (3)
MOTION: Councillor L. Dunne
"This Area Committee calls on the Chief Executive to give a report on what Waste Management Companies have been contacted by the Council to ask for details of households who are compliant with waste collection laws in the Tallaght area. Additionally, that the Chief Executive gives a report on what actions have been taken for those found not to be compliant, particularly around black spots."
REPORT:
"South Dublin County Council Waste Enforcement Section monitors the compliance of household waste collections through the implementation of an inspection regime of approved collectors and householders. Based on data submitted to the National Waste Collection Permit Office in 2017, there is in excess of 98,000 householders in receipt of household waste collection services in the SDCC Area. In accordance with the Waste Management Act 1998, as amended and South Dublin County Council Household Waste Bye-Laws 2012, householders must dispose of their household waste by
- Entering into an agreement with an “Authorised Waste Collector”.
- OR
- Bringing their household waste directly to an approved waste facility, themselves.
As such Waste Management Companies/Collectors can only comment on the level of compliance of their customers. Due to GDPR and Market Sensitive Information (Full Customer lists), Waste Collectors are not in a position to provide full details of compliant customers. South Dublin County Council Enforcement & Licencing does not have the staffing resources, to process in excess of 98,000 householders’ data, to confirm their compliance with legislation.
It should be noted South Dublin County Council carries out extensive inspections annually in relation to household waste. SDCC household waste inspection regime is detailed at the start of each year as part of the Annual RMCEI Plan (Recommended Minimum Criteria for Environmental Inspections Plan) and is formulated based on guidance and national priorities issued by the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment through the EPA and WERLA. The inspections are both routine inspections (Planned) and non-routine (Complaints). In relation to routine inspection the main areas of focus are as follows
- Household Waste Surveys – Due to the large volume of householders in the South Dublin Council jurisdiction, inspections are based on a representative sample for the area. Waste Enforcement Officers carry out inspections of the selected collection routes to monitor the householder’s compliance with the use of the waste collection service (correct segregation) and monitor the performance of the Waste Collectors. Additional routes are inspected based on complaints received from the section. The findings from the onsite inspections are correlated and form the basis of further inspections carried out on the Waste Collectors. As part of the inspection, Waste Enforcement Officers endeavour to identify houses not availing of a waste collection service which may require further investigation. Enforcement & Licencing intend to carry out in excess of 40 inspections of waste collection routes throughout 2018.
- Household Food Waste Collection Regime – This specifically looks at the role out of brown bin by waste collectors and its subsequent use by householders. Based on the findings of the Household Waste Surveys, waste collectors will be audited in relation to their compliance with providing the service and whilst householder’s compliance will be assessed by examining the quantity of waste collected. Enforcement & Licencing intend to audit a minimum 4 waste collectors. It should be noted four Household Waste Collectors, service 94% of the SDCC Households.
- Household Waste Collection Permit Holders data validation – Based on findings from Waste Survey inspections, Household Waste Collectors operating in SDCC are inspected to validate the findings of the site inspections and the data submitted by the Waste Collector to the NWCPO Office. As majority of Waste Collectors operate in more than one local authority area these inspections will be coordinated by WERLA to include SDCC Enforcement Staff.
In 2017, South Dublin County Council received approximately 260 complaints relating to the public health nuisance resulting from non-compliance with household waste legislation by householders. These complaints have been investigated by Environmental Health Officers and have been dealt with under Public Health legislation. The investigations main focus is to identify non-compliance in relation to the holding of household waste and assist householders in becoming complaint with the appropriate legislation. It should be noted, frequently there are other issues with non-complaint householders, which may require multi-agency approach in addressing the issue. The requirement for further Enforcement action is assessed by South Dublin County Council on a case by case basis.