Different Wastes

Municipal Waste

The image shows a bin on a street packed full of household and commerical waste.

Municipal Waste

The image shows a bin on a street packed full of household and commerical waste.

It is estimated that almost 14 million tonnes of waste were generated in Ireland in 2018 across all economic sectors and households, corresponding to 2.9 tonnes per person (EPA, 2020). Waste can generated across a number of areas, and includes municipal , agricultural, manufacturing and construction and demolotion waste amongst others.

Household waste is produced within a home setting, while Commercial waste comes from premises used wholly or mainly for the purposes of a trade/business or for sport, recreation, education or entertainment. Both of these wastes together are labelled Municipal Waste. Such waste is challenging to manage and treat because of its varied nature and composition. Over 2.9 million tonnes of municipal waste were generated in 2018, 53% from households and 47% from commercial sources (EPA, 2020).

Since 2012, municipal waste generation has grown by 15%. The quantity disposed of to landfill has subsequently decreased, but the move has been towards energy recovery rather than recycling, as recycling rates initially leveled off from 2010 to 2017 and then decreased in 2018.

The EPA's Ireland's Environment 2020 - An Assessment report suggests that given that Ireland has reached a plateau in terms of waste management in recent years, delivering necessary waste prevention and circular economy ambitions will be a challenge in the coming years despite the publication by government of A Waste Action Plan for a Circular Economy: Ireland’s National Waste Policy 2020-2025 in 2020.

Other types of waste are listed below:

Biodegradable municipal waste includes items like wood, paper and cardboard that can undergo biological decomposition.
Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) is combustible materials that can be converted into energy in an industrial furnace.
Agricultural waste comes in both non-natural and natural forms. Non-natural waste includes packaging, non-packaging plastics (silage wrapping), animal health products (syringes) and waste from machinery (oil, tyres and batteries).
Manufacturing is the second greatest source of waste. The waste includes: food, beverages, basic metals, paper products, wood products and chemical products.
Construction and demolition waste is the unwanted material that arises from construction, renovation and demolition activities.