93. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment to provide an update on his Department’s engagement with the local authority sector and other relevant stakeholders to prioritise the development of a system which will assist local authorities in managing discarded nitrous oxide canisters; the timeline for the implementation of this system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59620/26]

I refer the Deputy to the reply to Question No 330 of 9 June 2026 (www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/question/2026-06-09/330/speech/675/). The position is unchanged.

Under EU waste legislation, discarded pressurised containers of nitrous oxide should be classified and treated as hazardous waste and as such used nitrous oxide canisters should not be placed in the residual waste bin or the recycling bin and require a specialist hazardous waste disposal service for collection and appropriate treatment.

My Department has continued to engage with the local authority sector and other relevant stakeholders, under the auspices of the National Hazardous Waste Management Plan, to prioritise the development of a system which will assist local authorities in managing discarded nitrous oxide canisters as a matter of urgency.

Arising from this process of engagement, a Working Group has been established, chaired by the Regional Waste Management Planning Offices, to address the issue. Membership of the Working Group consists of representatives of the local authority sector, the Environmental Protection Agency and officials from the Department. It will prioritise the development of guidance and procedures to assist all local authorities in appropriately managing this material via the civic amenity site network. In addition, the Working Group is committed to developing appropriate awareness raising measures to ensure that the public are fully informed about how to properly dispose of this material.