Dublin City Council is trying to stop private operators collecting household waste and instead is attempting to create a monopoly supply for the Poolbeg incinerator, says Steve Cowman
Dublin householders who have been enjoying the benefits of competition in the domestic waste collection market in recent times may lose their new-found choice and breadth of service if Dublin City Council gets its way.
The council, on behalf of the four Dublin local authorities, is attempting to change the regional waste management plan to exclude the private sector from servicing the domestic market and effectively give the local authorities a monopoly. In the context of the vast improvements and efficiencies being experienced by householders where competition has begun to flourish, this must feel like a step in the wrong direction.
It is clear from the customer numbers moving to private operators that there is a strong demand for competition and choice.
Just some of the benefits enjoyed by private sector customers include a reduction in waste charges of up to 30 per cent, an extended range of materials accepted in the green bin, increased frequency of collections and the introduction of additional services, such as kerbside glass collections.
Modern waste infrastructure, which allows for better recycling and diversion from landfill, was slow to develop in Ireland. This has left us with an infrastructural deficit which has impacted directly on our ability as a nation to manage our waste cost effectively and to best environmental standards. This situation has improved in recent times, no small thanks to private sector investment which is estimated to be well in excess of €350 million in the past seven years.
For investment to continue at this level and above, the private sector will need certainty and access to an open market.
Dublin City Council has published an array of arguments to seek to justify its position. It is significant to note that none of the concerns cited by the council in its arguments are based upon discernible difficulties that have arisen since private contractors entered the Dublin market.
Rather, the argument is based on potential impacts and consequence in relation to which no evidence has been provided.
Assertions by the local authorities, which include a claim that the entry of private operators into the market may contribute to an increase in greenhouse gas emissions due to multiple trucks servicing routes, are without merit. Experience to date has shown that the number of trucks has not increased with competition.
In Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, the net number of trucks has remained constant, despite two new entrants in the past 12 months. With route optimisation programmes using GPS software, investment in modern vehicles and harnessing the latest emissions control technology, the reality is that carbon emissions will reduce as a result of competition and investment.
With respect to waiver schemes, different methods are used by each local authority and there are examples where the private sector works successfully in partnership with the local authority to administer the schemes. In other areas, such as Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, the discount offered by the private sector operators is of more value to the householder than the waiver allowed by the local authority.
Greenstar would contend that the proposed variation is neither reasonable nor necessary in order to achieve the environmental objectives the council has outlined.
A fundamental point is that all waste management companies operate under a waste permit, issued by the local authorities, and any concerns can be addressed through requirements or conditions attached to the permit. There is little doubt that the proposed policy reversal is intrinsically linked to the Dublin City Council-backed incinerator at Poolbeg in Ringsend.
Many argue that the motive is to obtain ownership of domestic waste (maybe ultimately of all wastes) to service projects, such as the incinerator, in which the local authorities have a direct or indirect commercial interest. Dublin City Council has signed a contract with the company selected to operate the Poolbeg incinerator that obliges the council to guarantee the supply of a certain quantity of waste per year to the facility, or pay a penalty.
The contract provides for bonus payments to the council if the incinerator's surpluses are above a certain level. Is this the reason that the local authorities wish to control competition and monopolise household waste collections?
Ultimately, what the council proposes is a fundamental change to national policy as it has operated over the last decade, with large- scale private investment and constructive partnership between the public and private sectors.
It represents a U-turn from accepted market-based competition in waste collection services.
It redefines and limits the role of the private sector in waste management collection and implicitly in waste processing and treatment.
Our legal advice indicates that this contravenes Irish and European rules on competition law.
The story of the Celtic Tiger and Ireland's transformation has involved opening up markets to competition and exposing the inefficiencies and inequities of our old system. In industries from aviation to transport and telecoms to energy, competition has brought unprecedented benefits.
Private waste management operators have introduced higher standards and efficiencies and contributed in no small part to the massive growth in recycling we have experienced in recent years. The attempt by Dublin City Council to reverse this progress is difficult to reconcile with an Ireland facing up to the global challenges of our time.
Steve Cowman is chief executive of Greenstar, Ireland's largest waste management company