At the November meeting of Leitrim County Council I seek the support of the Members to amend Leitrim County Council’s Household Waste Bye-Laws 2013 to address a number of concerns that have been highlighted previously.

The specific area for amendment is the current inflexible legally binding registration method. I am proposing that the bye-law be amended to include an additional alternative method for households, who are on a serviced route, to register. In addition to the current registration process with a permitted waste collector, I am proposing that the bye law includes an option for households, to alternatively, register annually with Leitrim County Council, where householders need to complete a self- declaration of their waste disposal methods. I also believe that it should be the Council that provides the registration method for households that are not on a serviced waste collection route, not private companies and the bye-law should be amended to include this.

Reply from the Director of Services:-

“Kerbside collection is the most cost efficent means of collecting waste and minimises the amount landfilled. In Leitrim the system is privatised with a legal contract formed between householder and collector. The registration system as provided for in the byelaws requires a householder in the first instance to make contact with the waste collection contractor to register for the provision of the service. If the contractor determines that they cannot provide the service then the customer must put in place a reasonable and documented alternative for the disposal of their refuse in a manner that will satisfy waste management legislation such as taking the refuse to a permitted waste facility. The purpose of the registration as set out is to ensure that in all cases the householder has made a reasonable effort to avail of a kerbside service in the first instance, which in turn provides the basis to put in place an alternative acceptable solution to their waste disposal. Therefore it is recommended that the byelaw is not amended in this regard. The process as adopted also identifies where services are deficient or problematic and our resources can then be employed only where they are most beneficial in the further development of the waste management service in the County.”

Councillor Sinead Guckian speaking at last nights meeting outlined that the restrictive nature of the registration process in the current bye-law, means that households who either, do not have a waste collection service available to them or households who dispose of their household waste through alternative legal methods, were being forced to give their details to a private contractor, in order, not to be in a position where they could be fined under the terms of the bye-law. She advised that since the “birth of this bye-law” at (Strategic Policy Committee ) SPC stages she has continuously raised concerns with the terms being adopted regarding how households would register. She advised that in Sligo County Council, an authority who has also adopted new bye-laws for the implementation of Pay-By-Weight, households registered directly with the Local Authority and therefore the Council had within its knowledge base all the details of households within the County, with or without serviced routes. She outlined that it was in the Council’s interest to have direct access to this information. She also advised that the amendment, as proposed, would allow households who are genuinely disposing of waste legally but who did not require a regular bin-lift, to make a declaration of their method of disposing, either online or manually to the Council. “The ultimate purpose of the bye-law and moving to a pay-by-weight system was to reduce waste and particularly reduce waste to landfill, the bye-law also had an important purpose, in providing the Council with a method of identifying households that are illegally disposing of their waste. The amendments as proposed, to include an alternative registration method directly with the Council, would protect the benefits of the bye-law without potentially causing difficulties for households who don’t have a service to their door or don’t need a service to their door.”

Following on from the Directors reply, Councillor Sinead Guckian welcomed the support from members and proposed the amendment, this was seconded. Although the Director requested that the matter be given to the SPC for further consideration, Councillor Guckian asked for full agreement for the proposal to be carried and for the process of amending the bye-law to commence. This was agreed by all members and Councillor Sinead Guckian thanked them again for their support.