The decision by Dublin's local authorities to give the council exclusive rights for household waste collection in the region will cost households up to €30 million per annum, it was claimed today.
The Irish Waste Management Association (IWMA), the national waste industry body, said it is opposed to the move because it says it is an attempt to turn back the clock on positive private sector investment, consumer choice and competition.
The IWMA said local authorities are attempting to stop private operators competing for business and instead the council will be given exclusive rights for household waste collection in the Dublin region.
"Given the potential annual saving of up to €30 million in waste charges for households, the IWMA challenges the Dublin authorities and Department of the Environment to explain why they wish to remove competition and consumer choice in the city," the association said.
The decision by the capital's four local authorities ends private operators' freedom to operate anywhere they like in the city.
Under the change, the local authorities will either collect rubbish themselves from homes, or else license an operator to collect it - ending the existing situation where two or three private companies are competing for business in a single estate.
Last night, Dublin City Council's assistant city manager, Matt Twomey, defended the decision, arguing that private firms, who have won the business to collect from 40,000 of the 400,000 homes in the capital in just 18 months, have "cherry-picked" the business.
In the face of warnings from Greenstar, City Bins and Panda that they would challenge such a move in the European courts, Mr Twomey said the councils had sought, and received confirmation from the European Commission that they are "operating within Irish and EU law".
Currently, 100 private waste companies are licensed to operate in Dublin, but just three collect from homes. All will now be asked to give full details of their business within 21 days.