Minister of State welcomes rollout of Deposit and Return Scheme - Kilkenny Live

Minister of State for Heritage, Malcolm Noonan has welcomed amendments to planning regulations in relation that will facilitate the rollout of the new Deposit and Return Scheme

“We all have our part to play in tackling climate change and improving our environment. Recycling is one of those activities where everyone has a chance to play a role and I’m looking forward to the start of the new Deposit and Return Scheme introduced by my colleague, the Minister of State for the Circular Economy, Ossian Smyth, TD. Reverse vending machines will make it easier for all to take part and today’s amendments to planning regulations will smooth their roll-out,” he said.

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With regards to the Government’s new ‘Deposit and Return’ scheme for bottles, the Programme for Government and Ireland’s national waste policy (Waste Action Plan for a Circular Economy) set out the government’s commitment to introduce a Deposit and Return Scheme (DRS) for plastic bottles and aluminium cans and last November a new scheme was launched with a planned go-live date for consumers in February 2024.

The scheme encourages people to recycle drink containers and works by charging anyone who buys a drink a small deposit for the plastic bottle or can that it comes in. Customers get this money back when they return the container to a retailer or other collection point to be recycled.

To assist retail outlets to be modified to cater for ‘reverse vending machines’ (RVMs) and to facilitate the smooth rollout of the required infrastructure for the Deposit Return Scheme, Minister O’Brien has sought amendments to the existing Planning and Development Regulations 2001 to provide an exemption for the installation, alteration, repair or replacement of RVMs and to insert a new definition of “reverse vending machine” into the principal regulations.