merrion street

Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government, Phil Hogan T.D. today (21 March, 2012) announced that Ireland has exceeded the interim EU Directive target of 25 % for the recycling of batteries. In making this announcement of the collection of over 613 tonnes of batteries, the Minister congratulated the CEOs of WEEE Ireland and ERP Ireland, Mr. Leo Donovan and Mr. Martin Tobin, for the efforts of their organisations in collecting over 29% of the portable batteries sold in Ireland between 2009 and 2011.

Minister Hogan said: “I wish to thank everyone involved in helping Ireland exceed this interim EU target. In particular, I wish to thank the public for their support and especially those who assisted the campaign in schools around the country. I would encourage the public to continue to recycle their batteries and I believe that this excellent result leaves Ireland well placed to meet our future battery recycling targets.”

Mr. Martin Tobin said that the aim of ERP has for the coming year is to continue to do more to divert batteries being unnecessarily sent to landfill. He added that: “This can be best achieved by encouraging the public to form battery recycling habits that mirror how they bring bottles to the bottle bank or bring reusable shopping bags to the grocery store, all in a bid to drive a sustainable culture and protect the environment”.

Mr. Leo Donovan, said “We are encouraging everyone to keep this push going. Remember that it is free and easy to recycle waste batteries at your local recycling centre, free collection events and your nearest WEEE registered retail outlet. Let’s make sure that no more harmful batteries are unnecessarily sent to landfill this year.”