Fine Gael and the Labour Party have both claimed that the changeover to "pay-by-use" waste charges from January 1st could cost householders more because of the absence of any cap on increases.
Mr Eamon Gilmore TD, Labour's environment spokesman, cited the example of South Dublin, which made the changeover last year from a flat annual charge of €190 to a "pay-by-use" charge of €6 per bag.
"For a household presenting one refuse bin per week, this would increase their waste charge bill by over 60 per cent," he said, adding that some allowance needed to be made for people's ability to pay.
Mr Gilmore said Labour was also calling for increases in charges to be capped, allowances to be made for larger families, and a national waiver scheme for households on low incomes.
Mr Bernard Allen, Fine Gael's environment spokesman, said it was only a matter of time until local authorities began charging households the full economic cost of waste disposal of €600 to €700 per year.
He noted that the Minister for the Environment, Mr Cullen, had already conceded that local authorities may continue levying an annual charge for waste management with an additional pay-by-use charge on top.
Mr Allen also complained that there were "vast areas throughout the country" with inadequate recycling facilities.
While the Green Party leader, Mr Trevor Sargent TD, congratulated the Minister for adopting his party's policy on waste charges, he said a deadline should be set for comprehensive kerbside recycling.
"Each person in Ireland now produces 700kg of waste each year. This figure is expected to rise to two tonnes per person by 2015 if further waste management strategies are not introduced."
Cork Harbour Alliance for a Safe Environment (CHASE) said while weight-based waste charges were welcome, it had to be made easier to recycle by providing kerbside collections.
"Making it difficult for the public to recycle, then penalising them for failing, runs the serious risk of increasing backyard burning and illegal dumping," said a spokeswoman for CHASE.
Repak, the industry-funded packaging recycling scheme, welcomed the January 1st deadline. Its own research showed that 72 per cent of Irish adults were in favour of the introduction of "pay-by-use" charges.
