DCU News
News at DCU
DCU becomes first Irish university to go ‘plastic-free
DCU becomes first Irish university to go ‘plastic-free’

DCU becomes first Irish university to go ‘plastic-free’

University to phase out single-use plastics completely by 2020



Dublin City University has today announced the first phase of a new sustainability drive which will see the University become ‘plastic-free’ by 2020.


DCU has identified a range of single-use, disposable plastic items to be eliminated due to their detrimental impact on the environment.  Implementation begins today, as part of DCU’s Green Campus Week, with plastic cups and glasses being withdrawn from all campuses with immediate effect.   The initiatives are the result of common drive by the University and its Students’ Union to create a more sustainable campus environment.


Takeaway coffee cups, single-use plastic takeaway containers, takeaway cutlery, straws and single-use plastic bags will be eliminated by September 2018, with plastic water and soft drink bottles completely phased out by 2020.  


Minister for Communications, Climate Action & the Environment, Mr Denis Naughten TD joined with the President and DCU Students’ Union to launch the plastic-free drive:


I commend DCU staff and students for their leadership on this issue.  As a society we discard an incredible 80% of what we produce after a single use.  We have a global and a national plastics crisis and our young people are central to solving it through leading by example and helping to change collective behaviour.  I congratulate DCU on playing its part on tackling our plastics problem head on.’


Professor Brian MacCraith, President of DCU, explained how the university has committed to placing sustainability at the core of all its activities:


“Our prioritisation of sustainability as a key theme reflects DCU’s commitment to address a very real challenge, both at local and global levels.  Today’s announcement is the start of a journey which will help set best practice for our students, staff and society around us.”

DCU Green Week (19-23 March), led by the Students’ Union, will feature talks on sustainability initiatives across the university, research on the impact of declining bee populations on our ecosystems, and the replanting by students of a wild flower meadow beside the university library with seed bombs.