Conference Agenda
9:00 Morning Session Chaired by Enda Kiernan, Chairperson, CIWM Republic of Ireland
9:05 MINISTERIAL OPENING KEYNOTE ADDRESS
Alan Dillon, T.D., Minister of State at the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications
9:20 Policy Developments to drive our Circular Economy Ambitions
- EU Policy landscape
- National Circular Economy Strategy
- Waste Collection Market Study
- Look ahead from a policy perspective
Martina Hennessy, Assistant Secretary for Circular Economy & Resource Efficiency in the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment (DCEE).
INTERNATIONAL KEYNOTE SPEAKER
9:40 Lithium-ion batteries | The good, the bad and the downright dangerous!
- What is thermal runaway and why does it happen in these batteries?
- Why do we use them and where can we find them?
- What are some of the other issues and what is being done?
- How are they treated at end of life?
- What do we see happening moving forward?
Christopher Porter – Sustainability Consultant and Circular Economy Lead, SLR Consulting Ltd.
10:00 By-Products and End of Waste and EPA Guidelines for Resources and Construction Waste Plans and Behaviour Research carried out on the construction sector.
The EPA carry out a number of different activities related to construction waste in the Circular Economy Programme but for this conference will concentrate on the above.
Caitríona Collins, Senior Manager, EPA Circular Economy Programme and Fiona McCoole, Senior Manager, EPA Circular Economy Programme
10:20 Legal updates on all that has happened in the waste area, both Irish and European, over the last year
Alison Fanagan, Co-head of A&L Goodbody Solicitors Environment & Planning Group
10:40 Q&A 1 Progressing Circular Economy Policies in Ireland
10:55 Morning Coffee Break, Exhibition Viewing and Networking
11:25 Panda’s investments and progress in recent years and how we are continuing to invest to meet recycling targets
- Progress on the Camera Detection System
- Brown bin roll-out
- Capital investment
John Brosnan, Director Residential Collections, Panda
Barriers to the circular economy and solutions on how to overcome them
- Linear by design, why our economy is linear and not circular
- The economics of the linear economy
- the top 4 barriers to circularity and how to overcome them
David Tobin, Circular Economy and ESG / Sustainability Director, Panda
11:45 Working Smarter: Private AI Systems for Irish Waste Management
Running a waste company means constant firefighting – contamination issues, compliance deadlines, operational problems, customer complaints. Meanwhile Ireland’s 2030 recycling targets aren’t getting any easier.
Private AI systems – where all your company data stays confidential and in-house – offer a practical way to work smarter:
- Spotting patterns and problems early, before they become crises
- Automating routine monitoring and data gathering
- Supporting compliance and operations teams with better insights, faster
- Helping leadership spend less time chasing information and more time on what matters: meeting recycling targets, reducing contamination, building circular economy solutions
Real examples from our experience at Greyhound – what works, what doesn’t, and what’s worth the investment.
Neill Ryan, CEO, Greyhound Recycling
12:05 The Circular Packaging Waste Challenge
- Repak’s role in the Packaging System
- PPWR Impact for Business & the Waste Industry
- Repak Supports for Members
- Infrastructure Challenges & Future Opportunities
- Pathway to Compliance
Zoe Kavanagh, CEO, Repak
12:25 Re-turn: DRS 2 years in!
- Update on Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme
Ciaran Foley, CEO, Re-turn
12:45 Local Government Sector Meeting Waste Management & Circular Economy Challenges
- National Waste Management Plan for a Circular Economy Ambition and Targets
- Plan Implementation Year 1 Key Achievements and Ongoing Challenges
- Plan Implementation Year 2 Areas of Emphasis and Priorities
- Building the Brand and Reaching New Audiences
Kevin Swift, Regional Co-Ordinator, Connacht Ulster Regional Waste Office
1:05 Q&A 2 Waste Industry’s role in implementing the Circular Economy
1:20 Lunch, Exhibition Viewing and Networking (Sponsored by A&L Goodbody)
2:15 Afternoon Session Chaired by Des Crinion, Chairperson, IWMA
2:20 INTERNATIONAL KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Are Waste streams a “Lost Opportunity?
- Current state of play globally on resources,
- Role of waste and resource managers
- Innovations in material extraction
- Presidential report highlighting 6 materials
Dr David Greenfield, President, CIWM UK
2:40 IWMA Updates on Increasing Recycling Rates
- Results so far
- Feedback from Contamination Detection System Trials
- Roll out of video communications with customers
- Better segregation of WEEE and Lithium Batteries”
Conor Walsh, Secretary, Irish Waste Management Association (IWMA)
3:00 Recycling and Circularity – is it achievable?
- Circularity what does it really mean
- Regulation – the gaps
- Failure to support recyclers
- Public perception knowledge and interest in recycling
- Cost of failure to us all
Brian Finnegan, CTO Brian Shabra Group
3:20 NTERNATIONAL KEYNOTE SPEAKER
The AI enabled MRF – a glimpse into the future of waste processing
- AI sorts: new sorts, improved sorts & where NIR will still be needed
- Redesign of MRFs from the ground up – how AI sorts bring in new layout opportunities
- Case studies in DMR, C&D and WEEE
Victor Dewult, CEO, Recycle Eye
3:40 Q&A 3 The Way Forward for Ireland
4:00 Conference Ends