Offaly County Council is delighted to confirm its collaboration with main sponsors KMK Metals Recycling and Tullamore Chamber with the launch of 2Go Cups with numerous local coffee shops in Tullamore town and surrounding areas. Endorsed by Tullamore Tidy Towns and Tullamore Credit Union, this project is an example of Climate Action as it reduces the use of single-use paper cups in our county.
With over 200 million single-use cups disposed of in Ireland annually, and 22,000 discarded every hour, it’s imperative to address this unnecessary waste ending up in landfills. Considering that 7 out of 10 people in Ireland own a reusable cup, there’s potential for significant impact.
The project is spearheaded by Climate Action Team within Offaly County Council who “emphasise the importance of bringing reusable cups for takeaway beverages, but also highlights the availability of a more sustainable option through the 2GoCup scheme.”
2GoCup operates as a cup deposit system, where users pay a €2 deposit for a takeaway cup and can return it to any participating coffee shop to reclaim their deposit or exchange it for a clean cup for their next beverage.
Shane Murray, Chair of Tullamore Tidy Towns, welcomes the role of this initiative in reducing litter, particularly single-use coffee cups, which constitute a significant portion of collected rubbish during local cleanups. Shane confirms that “this initiative is a win – win for our environment and our pockets.”
Local business owner, Kieran Conroy of The Pheonix Tullamore, confirms that “as a business owner, I recognise the economic and environmental benefits of joining the scheme and as the operator of this scheme in Áras An Chontae staff canteen, I can see this initiative has eliminated the need to purchase paper cups. Not only has it reduced waste it has reduced my operating costs also.”
Acknowledging the overwhelming nature of sustainability and climate change discussions, the participating businesses see this initiative as a manageable step individuals can take daily to positively impact the local environment.
Currently, Ballcommon Bake House, Hamiltons (Geashil), The Honey Bean, MEET & fit, The Little Coffee Hut, The Phoenix, the Copper Still located in The Old Warehouse, and the Tullamore Court Hotel are part of the scheme, with hopes for further expansion.
Community Climate Action Officer with Offaly County Council, Sinead McEvoy, concluded that “It the aim of all partners involved to have all local business on board with the long-term goal of rolling this initiative out countywide. Interested businesses can contact me via email, smcevoy@offalycoco.ie and I will outline how they can get involved.”
