EPA - Ireland's Environment, An Integrated Assessment - 2020

Ireland’s Environment – An Integrated Assessment 2020 Timely Waste Data The provision of good-quality, timely waste data is a priority action. Provision of quality and timely waste data is a priority action for Ireland (EC, 2019). To meet this priority, waste management operators must provide good-quality data to regulators when they need it. Local authorities must complete data validation work in good time to allow timely publication of national waste statistics. Regulators should identify waste statistics that can be provided on a more up-to-date basis, even as preliminary information, to inform enforcement and investment in the waste industry and for decision-making by policymakers. Fixed penalty notices could be an effective administrative sanction to introduce for operators that fail to report on time or whose data reporting requires significant validation efforts. Introducing a legislative requirement to make certain waste collection and facility data accessible online, without compromising commercial sensitivity, should be considered. The circular economy legislation is introducing new reporting obligations and calculation methods, and setting up data sources and reporting methodologies will need significant resources in the short term. 5. Promoting Sustainable Behaviours and the Circular Economy National Waste Prevention Programme The National Waste Prevention Programme supports national initiatives that prevent waste and drive the circular economy. The National Waste Prevention Programme supports national-level, strategic programmes to prevent waste and drive the circular economy. Programmes include the Green Enterprise 28 innovation funding programme, the Local Authority Prevention Network 29 and Smart Farming. 30 Food waste prevention has greater priority in the National Waste Prevention Programme since its review in 2018, and new initiatives are being undertaken to examine the nature and extent of food waste in Ireland and estimate carbon impacts. The programme will continue to build on the successful consumer-focused Stop Food Waste 31 and business- focused Food Waste Charter, Retail Action Group and Food Waste Forum. Green Public Procurement – Public Sector as Leader Green public procurement can be a stimulus for waste prevention and the circular economy. Green public procurement (GPP) has significant potential to create a critical mass of demand for more sustainable goods and services, given that public sector purchasing accounts for up to 12 per cent of Ireland’s gross domestic product each year (Topic Box 9.5). The Climate Action Plan recognises that the public sector has a leadership role in GPP (DCCAE, 2019b), as does the Green Government initiative (DCCAE, 2019c). The programme for government ‘Our Shared Future’ commits to developing and implementing a sustainable procurement policy and to mandating the inclusion of green criteria in all procurement using public funds within 36 months (Government of Ireland, 2020). The EPA’s Green Procurement Guidance for the Public Sector (EPA, 2014) is under review and a revised version will be published in early 2021. GPP training for government departments and public bodies has started in 2020 and a GPP monitoring and reporting template for government departments is in preparation. The EU Green Deal flags the potential for GPP legislative targets, and the Farm to Fork Strategy proposes minimum mandatory GPP for public food and catering contracts. 28 http://www.epa.ie/researchandeducation/research/epafunding/ greenenterprise/ 29 https://localprevention.ie 30 https://smartfarming.ie 31 https://stopfoodwaste.ie 244