Work is underway to ensure that Galway becomes a cleaner and environmentally friendly place to live and visit with both local authorities taking part in new recycling and waste prevention initiatives.
The Galway City Council has announced this week that a cash for cans initiative will be implemented to encourage the public to recycle aluminium cans in return for a few bob while Galway County Council has made savings of €270,000 and has reduced waste by participating in the EPA’s Local Authority Prevention Demonstration Programme (LAPD ).
Welcoming the cash for cans proposal Councillor Catherine Connolly, the chairwoman of the Environmental Strategic Policy Committee, said this week that it was a “very positive” initiative, one that will be “carefully monitored to ensure its success”.
Cllr Connolly explained that the proposal had arisen originally from the community forum and that she had tabled a motion in this regard at council level more than 18 months ago. The matter was then referred to the Environment Strategy Policy Committee.
“All committee members and city council officials were very enthusiastic about the proposal. Then at the Environment SPC last Thursday the proposal from the Director of Services, Kevin Swift, was approved by committee members and the matter is to come back before the November meeting with a view to finalising same and ensuring monies are set aside in the Budget to commence the project,” she said.
The cash for cans initiative will encourage people to return a clear bag of used aluminium cans to the city council civic facility at the Liosbaun Estate and they will be given approximately €6 per bag. It is hoped that the initiative will also be taken up by both primary and secondary schools in the city and also by the third level institutions.
“In this regard the city council are more than prepared to work with all educational establishments in the city and to place suitable bins in schools and on the sites of third level colleges to encourage students to deposit their aluminium cans. It would of course be open to these institutions to use the cash for cans scheme to donate the monies earned to local charities,” said Cllr Connolly, who added that there are also plans to roll out a recycle scheme for plastic in the near future.
Meanwhile, Galway County Council was one of 12 local authorities who successfully bid for funding to participate in the LAPD initiative and has since made savings of €270,000 by working in conjunction with Galway Mayo Institute of Technology, Udarás na Gaeltachta, and Galway Chamber of Commerce. The LAPD includes waste prevention, waste diversion from landfill, raising awareness, and environmental training.
EPA programme manager and chair of the National Waste Prevention Committee, Gerry Byrne said: “The Local Authority Prevention Network is a key component in the promotion of resource efficiency and waste prevention at a local grassroots level. The network builds capacity in local authorities for the benefit of their localities. This programme continues to demonstrate that preventing waste and implementing resource efficiencies in any organisation can lead to significant savings, in addition to the obvious environmental benefits”.
