Ireland has generated the most plastic packaging waste in the EU in 2016 for the third year in a row, according to data compiled by Eurostat.
The Environmental Protection Agency revealed that it launched an investigation last March to check whether the scenario shown in the Eurostat figures was accurate.
According to Eurostat, Ireland remained in the top spot for plastic packaging waste generation per capita in 2016 despite a 3.4 per cent reduction year on year.
A total of 57.9 kg of plastic packaging waste was produced per person, 82 per cent higher than the EU average.
Luxembourg was the second-biggest generator of plastic packaging waste in 2016 with 53.1 kg per capita, followed by Estonia, Germany, and Denmark.
The UK ranked eighth with 34.4kg per head, and Greece, Bulgaria, and Croatia were the lowest, with 17.3 kg, 15.1 kg, and 13.1 kg respectively.
The Environmental Protection Agency said: “The figures for Ireland’s plastic waste generation in comparison with other EU countries do indicate that we have higher levels of use than similar countries.”
Via The Times