Vol. 429 No. 1
45 Mr. Hogan asked the Minister for the Environment the action, if any, he has taken to transpose into Irish law the provisions of EC Directive No. 91/557/EEC relating to the disposal of batteries; the date by which the Government is required to have taken the appropriate action; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
83 Ms Keogh asked the Minister for the Environment the steps, if any, he intends to take to implement the EC Directive on batteries and accumulators containing certain dangerous substances as contained in Directive 91/157/EEC.
84 Ms Keogh asked the Minister for the Environment the steps, if any, he intends to take to inform the public of the dangers of disposing of batteries in the dust bins along with household waste and of the need to collect then for recyclable purposes.
Wexford): I propose to take Questions Nos. 45, 83 and 84 together. Regulations to be made shortly by the Minister for the Environment and the Minister for Enterprise and Employment will, together with appropriate administrative measures, give effect as far as possible to Council Directive 91/157/EEC. It was envisaged that member states should transpose this Directive before 18 Sep-tember, 1992. However, some provisions of the Directive cannot be fully implemented because of delay at EC level in drawing up certain detailed arrangements pursuant to Article 4. A Commission Directive incorporating these arrangements is likely to come into force on 1 January, 1994 and will require further national regulations for its transposition.
Measures to inform consumers of the dangers of uncontrolled disposal of spent batteries, and to ensure their separate collection with a view to recovery or disposal, will be developed in the context of the forthcoming Commission Directive.
