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2004 Repak Results
Highlights summary
Repak, the industry funded recycling scheme,
has revealed initial packaging recycling figures for 2004.
Approximately 479,000 tonnes was recycled last year
- representing 47% of all used packaging on the market and a 16%
increase on 2003. Repak also exceeded the 15% minimum recycling
target for 2005 in all material types. The industry body is delighted
with its performance in 2004, which shows it has driven recycling
rates from 15% in 1998, to in excess of 47% in 2004.
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Summary highlights 2004
- Repak funded the recovery and recycling of 479,000 tonnes
in 2004. This figure represents c.47% of all packaging
placed on the Irish market and a 16% increase on 2003.
- 17.5 million in Repak membership income was collected
to meet Irelands packaging recovery targets in 2004.
- New membership income amounted to 2.14 million.
- Repak spent 12.42 million in direct recycling supports
to local authorities and recovery operators.
- Plastic bottle recycling increased by 134% over 2003,
to a total of 4,897 tonnes (or nearly 110 million bottles).
This represented circa 14% of all plastic bottles placed
on the market.
- Repak funded the recycling of 1,650 tonnes of aluminium
- or circa 100 million aluminium cans.
- Repak - in partnership with the DoEHLG - helped fund the
placement of 294 new bring bank sites in 2004, bringing
the total number of new sites under this programme to 725
since October 2003. There are now in excess of 2,000 bring
sites in the country.
- Repak funded kerbside dry recycling collections, reaching
in excess of 450,000 households in 2004.
- Repak commissioned a report - and subsequently lobbied
government - highlighting the potential negative impact
of additional packaging levies beyond fees charged by Repak.
Source: EPA 2003 Database adjusted for contamination,
and projected market growth
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Membership Recruitment:1998
- 2004
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Repak membership increased to 1,923 in 2004 - representing
a net increase of 13% over 2003.
A total of 290 new members were welcomed into the scheme
in 2004 and new member revenue amounted to 2.14 million.
The new intake included 90 regular members and over 200 scheduled
members from the broadly based retail/consumer services sector
and the hospitality sector.
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Tonnes Recovered/Recycled
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In 2004, Repak funded the recovery/recycling of
479,000 tonnes of packaging - an increase of 16% on the previous
year. This represents approximately 47% of all packaging
placed on the Irish market - a significant increase from the
15% recovered / recycled in 1998.
Source: EPA 2003 Database adjusted for contamination,
and projected market growth |
Material Recovered/Recycled 2004
In line with Repak's strategy of targeting the heavier,
cost-effective material types, 82% of the materials recovered/recycled
comprised of paper/cardboard, wood and glass. Plastic and metals
accounted for a further 18% of materials recovered.
Material Recovery Rates 2004
Plastic
In 2004, Repak funded the recovery and recycling of 39,000 tonnes
of plastic packaging - a 15% increase on the previous year. This
represents approximately 21% of all used plastic packaging. This
was mainly shrinkwrap plastic, but, it can also be reported that
plastic bottle recycling grew by 134% in 2004 to 4,900 tonnes -
or circa 110 million bottles.
Paper/Cardboard
In 2004, Repak subsidised the recovery and recycling of 201,000
tonnes of paper and cardboard - i.e. 41% of all paper and board
packaging placed on the market. This was an increase of 14% over
2003. In 2004, paper and board accounted for 42% of the total weight
of materials collected through Repak.
Glass
88,000 tonnes of glass was recycled/recovered by Repak in 2004.
This is a significant increase of c. 17% on tonnes collected in
2003 and represents approximately 63% of all glass placed on the
Irish market. Glass accounted for 18% of the total weight of materials
collected by Repak in 2004.
Metals
In 2004, Repak recovered/recycled a total of 46,000 tonnes of metal.
This was made up of 44,000 tonnes of steel and 1,800 tonnes of aluminium
and represented approximately 49% of all metals placed on the market
- with both materials accounting for approximately 10% of the total
weight of materials collected by Repak in 2004.
Wood/Other
The market for recycled wood continues to be very strong, with over
106,000 tonnes recovered in 2004. This was an increase of 21% over
2003 and represented approximately 95% of all wood/other materials
placed on the Irish market.
Operating Surplus/Deficit by Year
Income generated from Repak recycling fees amounted
to 17.5m for the year ending 31st December 2004 - including 1.65m
of non-recurring income.This represented a 16% increase over 2003
revenues of 15.1m.
Despite supporting increased recycling activity, Repak
managed to reduce total expenditure - from approximately 20.5m
in 2003 to 16.5m in 2004 - and reverse previous operating deficits.
This was achieved through careful management of direct recycling
costs and overhead expenditure. Such cuts were necessary to bring
Repaks expenditure into line with income.
Operating Expenditure 2004
Total direct recycling costs represented 76% of total
expenditure in 2004 - compared to 70% in 2002 and 67% in 2001. Total
overheads were reduced by 11% - from 4.5 million to 4.03 million
in 2004.
Direct Recycling Expenditure
While supporting increasing tonnages, it was necessary
to adjust both the commercial and domestic subsidy levels in order
to address previous operating deficits. Total payments to local
authorities and recovery operators in 2004 were reduced to 12.4
million - compared to 15.9 million in the previous year - a decrease
of 22% in direct recycling expenditure.Over the past 5 years, Repak
has invested approximately 51.4m in direct recycling supports.
Total Expenditure Split
Domestic supported tonnes accounted for 19% of total
recovery activity and 56% of total expenditure. This demonstrates
the higher cost of domestically sourced packaging recycling.
Domestic sourced tonnes will form a greater element
of the total recycling target in future years and will impact on
the future cost base.
Communication/Educational Activities
2004
Repak communication/educational activities in 2004
focused on the following major areas:
- members and other stakeholders
- recruitment
- consumer recycling campaigns - and
- anti-litter campaigns.
Repak organised various meetings and seminars for
members and stakeholders throughout 2004. The fourth annual Repak
Recycling Awards were presented to promote and recognise excellence
in recycling amongst all stakeholders.
Consumer education activities included -
- Repak Cash for Cans
- the Repak Easter Appeal
- Repak National Recycling Week in October - and
- the Repak Green Christmas campaign.
All these activities are designed to encourage consumers to segregate
and recycle their packaging.
Repak also continued its sponsorship of two major
national anti-litter campaigns in 2004 -
- An Taisce National Spring Clean - and
- the National Tidy Towns awards.
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