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submitted 8 months ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/world@lemmy.world

Killarney used to accept it as a price of being a tourist town: ubiquitous disposable coffee cups spilling from bins, littering roads and blighting the area’s national park.

The County Kerry town went through about 23,000 cups a week – more than a million a year – adding up to 18.5 tonnes of waste.

Not any more. Three months ago, Killarney became the first town in Ireland to phase out single-use coffee cups. If you want a takeaway coffee from a cafe or hotel, you must bring your own cup or pay a €2 deposit for a reusable cup that is returned when the cup is given back.

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[-] DeathWearsANecktie@lemm.ee 60 points 8 months ago

Very good system. We all need to get into the habit of bringing our own bottles/cups and reusable bags when we're out and about.

[-] greenmarty@lemmy.world 21 points 8 months ago

...as used to be common in the past.

[-] tsonfeir@lemm.ee 7 points 8 months ago
[-] greenmarty@lemmy.world 6 points 8 months ago
[-] Syrc@lemmy.world 8 points 8 months ago

That honestly seems like a hassle. Long trips and stuff I understand, but if I’m just hanging with my friends with nothing on me I don’t want to carry a bag just to put a cup in it.

The deposit system they’re using in that town seems much better to me, as long as that’s an option I’m on board.

[-] ganove@feddit.de 8 points 8 months ago

The deposit system would be great to see for take away/ delivery food as well. Here in Germany we have it for coffee cups and bottles/ cans you buy from the supermarket. Works great and is really easy to adapt to, just the garbage from Take away food is still a pain in the ass.

[-] bob_lemon@feddit.de 2 points 8 months ago

Yeah, it would be pretty cool, especially since recycling isn't even an option for Pizza boxes.

Although I can imagine that a reusable pizza box is actually worse in terms of CO2. Production and cleaning might be worse over the projected lifetime than the current system.

[-] funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works 8 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

it's a return to tradition. few hundred years ago you'd have your sword and your tankard on your belt as part of your daily carry

[-] Elivey@lemmy.world 1 points 8 months ago

Tiny inconveniences in our lives are far less important than the billions of tons of pollution we create every year...

[-] Syrc@lemmy.world 1 points 8 months ago

Sure, but the deposit system doesn’t create pollution either and is also a much smaller inconvenience.

[-] mp3@lemmy.ca 2 points 8 months ago

I have a collapsible coffee cup made of silicone, works pretty well and barely takes any space at all in my bag.

this post was submitted on 15 Oct 2023
699 points (98.3% liked)

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