Wexford): I thank the Senators for their contribution on the motion before the House regarding air quality in Cork. It was a wide ranging debate, covering issues such as storage schemes, plastic bags, sprayed on gasses and benzene. The Senators are well briefed and up to date on the areas of the environment which affect people.
Smoke pollution has been a major environmental concern in Cork city and its environs. Average annual smoke concentrations in the area are running at twice the average level of other urban areas in the country. Air quality limits for smoke have not been breached in recent years in Cork, but they are constantly being threatened.
The Cork smoke problem has therefore been high on my agenda since taking up office last year. I have met with and listened to many political representatives and interested groups, both Cork Corporation and Cork County Council, in addition to the solid fuel industry in Cork. The outcome of this process is that the Government has decided to ban the marketing, sale and distribution of bituminous coal in Cork city and surrounding area. In other words, we are extending to Cork the same smoke control regime as has operated with great success in the Dublin area. This will include a £3 supplement to the normal fuel allowance to assist low income households in the designated Cork area with the higher costs of using smokeless fuel. The Minister for Social Welfare — and I wish to thank him for his interest and commitment in this area — is making the necessary administrative arrangements. Exchequer costs will be at least £1.2 million in a full year.
We have already begun preparations for the coal ban. These will involve the Cork local authorities, the local fuel industry, and publicity and education campaigns aimed at the public. We are seeking to have the new regime in place from the beginning of 1995. Many comments were made on this aspect. The fuel industry may find it difficult to get rid of their stocks, but we have, from the date of announcement, given them a lead-in time of three to four months, which should be sufficient to ensure that much of the stocks they have at present will be disposed of.
The area involved will in principle be the same as the one which was designated last year for the more limited smoke control measures applied then. It includes all of Cork city and the district electoral divisions of Ballincollig, Douglas, Inishkenny, Lehenagh, Rathcooney, Bishopstown and St. Mary's, insofar as they are situated in County Cork. However, further discussions with the Cork local authorities may result in some refinement of this designated area. Indeed, at the press conference in Cork to announce the go-ahead for the banning of the coal, a number of public representatives made strong cases for other areas to be included. We will consider these areas and, hopefully in the near future, we will make a final decision.
In recent years smoke pollution in Cork city and its environs has reached worrying levels. Air quality standards have been regularly threatened, although not breached. Last October, following consultation with the local authorities, the fuel industry and the community groups I introduced a ban on slack and a requirement that all solid fuel retailers should carry smokeless fuels. These regulatory measures, which applied to the built-up area of Cork, were complemented by voluntary ones applied by major solid fuel suppliers.
I believe that it was necessary to attempt this lower cost solution before seeking to implement the higher cost measures which we have now decided on. Our review of air quality in Cork showed, however, that last year's measures would at best contain rather than improve the situation. In 1993-94 the standard for a three day value was exceeded for single days on three separate occasions, the annual 98 percentile value was 80 per cent of the specified standard, the winter median value was 64 per cent of the specified standard and the annual median value was 63 per cent of the specified standard.
If these trends were to continue there would be every prospect of air quality limits being breached in Cork. My judgement was that we should deal with this threat on a precautionary rather than a reactive basis. Accordingly, we recommended to the Government, and it accepted, that a full ban on bituminous coal should be extended to Cork from the earliest practicable date.
The Dublin coal ban measures introduced four years ago have achieved a remarkable and rapid transformation of air quality in that area. From a situation where gross breaches of smoke standards regularly occurred, Dublin smoke levels have now virtually reduced to the guide levels which are fixed aspirationally by the EU Directive as an indicator of optimum air quality.
It is therefore on the basis of proven effectiveness that the Government is extending the coal ban regime in Dublin to Cork. However, we must not assume that this regulatory initiative is sufficient of itself. The whole experience of the Dublin coal ban demonstrates that this measure relies for its success on a shared responsibility. Government, local authorities, the fuel industry and the public all have distinct but important roles to play in ensuring the success of the coal ban.
It is the job of Government, as we will do now do in Cork, to establish a clear regulation of the coal ban regime and to ensure that support is provided to lower income households to enable them to cope with any increased costs. The Government will also, in co-operation with the Cork local authorities and fuel industry, ensure that information on the coal ban is widely available to the Cork public.
In addition, it is the job of the Cork local authorities to enforce the prohibitions of the new smoke control régime actively and fairly. In this way the solid fuel trade will be guaranteed a level playing field for the transition to smokeless levels. It will also be for the Cork fuel industry to co-operate conscientiously with the new régime both by strictly observing the ban on bituminous coal and by ensuring the supply of good quality alternatives.
Finally, and I cannot over-emphasise this, Cork householders themselves hold the most important key to the success of the coal ban. Residents' groups, and local politicians on their behalf, have strongly advocated the ban which we are now extending to Cork. The new regime will not work without widespread public co-operation and consent. It will be for the local public to demonstrate to any unscrupulous traders that disrespect for the coal ban will not be tolerated and that householders are committed to the success of the ban from a civic and environmental point of view.
I would like at this stage to describe briefly the background to smoke control measures within the EU and Ireland. At EU level a Council Directive was adopted in 1980 which specified air quality standards for both sulphur dioxide and suspended particulates, or, as we know it, smoke. In Ireland the Air Pollution Act, 1987, established a modern legislative framework for the control of air pollution in order to meet national requirements and to facilitate the implementation of EU Directives and regulations relevant to air pollution control. The Act includes general provisions relating to air pollution, special control areas, air quality management plans and standards, monitoring of air quality and emissions and licensing of industrial plant to control air pollution.
The various EU Directives on air quality standards have been transposed into Irish law by regulations under the 1987 Air Pollution Act. The most significant of these regulations — the Air Pollution Act, 1987, and Air Quality Standards Regulations, 1987 — prescribe air quality standards for the whole country and give effect to EU Directives on smoke and sulphur dioxide, lead and nitrogen oxides, which up to 1987 had been implemented here by administrative measures.
Air quality standards are useful instruments of environmental policy. They set limits for the purpose of protecting human health as well as the natural and built environments. The limits are legally binding, but at the same time they do not constrain individual sources of emissions.
I am happy to state that Ireland has never breached the EU quality standards for sulphur dioxides, lead or nitrogen oxides. This is partly attributable to a comprehensive range of regulations, including controls on the sulphur content of certain liquid fuels, on the lead content of petrol and more recently on the enforcement of vehicle emission standards for all new vehicles.
Dublin is the one place in the entire country where breaches of the air quality standard for black smoke occurred. Breaches were significant both in terms of the levels of the exceedance and the numbers of occurrences.
Smoke pollution or smog occurs when black smoke or tiny grains of unburnt carbon are emitted from bituminous coal fires in large numbers and are not quickly dispersed into the wider atmosphere. This condition is particularly likely to occur in periods of calm cold weather which bring temperature inversions in the lower atmosphere. Such inversions trap the smoke-laden air close to the ground. Black smoke has adverse effects on health and can particularly effect the elderly or those suffering from respiratory conditions. It may also be a contributory factor in some lung cancers. Studies have shown a direct link between increased morbidity and mortality during incidences of elevated smoke levels.
There are of course other sources of smoke besides domestic fires. In modern cities smoke from industry is no longer the major source it once was, but transport, particularly diesel engined vehicles, has been a significant contributor to overall smoke levels. Obviously, in any area the percentage of smoke attributable to various sources is determined by a wide range of characteristics. These include topography and prevailing weather conditions. Work done in Dublin prior to the implementation of the bituminous coal ban there indicated that domestic sources accounted for about 80 per cent of the city's smoke and transport emissions for some 16 per cent. Transport emissions are now being addressed through stricter emissions on all new vehicles, including, in particular, heavy goods vehicles.
I said in Cork on 6 October that work would begin immediately to prepare for the implementation of the ban and I hope to have the controls in place by the beginning of 1995. That work is now underway. In finalising arrangements I will be looking at the precise designation of the area within which the marketing ban will operate in the light of local authority and community views. I would like to take this opportunity to say I very much welcome the support for the measures voiced by the local community groups and by the Cork coal trade in the wake of the announcement.
The introduction of the coal ban represents a major environmental opportunity for Cork. Let us all seize this opportunity. I am confident that Cork air quality and the health and amenity of Cork householders will greatly benefit from the new measures.
Some issues were raised in the course of the debate to which I would like to respond. Senator Mooney raised a number of issues such as sewerage schemes, which we will not get into tonight. He also raised the issue of plastic bags, as did Senator Cassidy. I share their concern. It is not an easy problem to solve. All supermarkets use plastic bags and are probably the biggest offenders in this regard. We have had meetings with the supermarket owners but have not been too successful to date. However, we will continue to try to find reasonable solutions to that problem. I accept that it is one of the major litter pollutants. In every road and street as one enters Dublin city one sees plastic bags in the ditches and so on, which is unsightly.
Senator Fahey mentioned litter from take-aways, which is another major problem. Litter generally is still a major problem in this country and one which we are trying to come to grips with.
Senator Cassidy spoke about turf, which is acceptable as a smokeless fuel. Briquettes are widely sold in Dublin. I concur with him that it is a national fuel and one which could probably create extra jobs if it was purchased on a wider scale. However, it is acceptable as a smokeless fuel.
Senator McDonagh mentioned the problem of radon gas in Galway. Radon is a natural phenomenon, but it can give rise to high levels of exposure to radioactivity. The Government has fixed a precautionary level of 200 becquerels for exposure to radon in buildings. Our guidelines on building regulations take account of this limit and we are currently running an active campaign of information for the public and to public institutions about measures which can be taken to reduce radon levels. The Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland has also devised a low cost testing service for this area. We are monitoring the situation and will be advised of any developments in that area.
Senator Henry spoke about the traffic management measures in Cork and the need to curb emissions from transport. Much work has already taken place in relation to the future transport problems of the Cork area based on the land use and transportation study of some years ago. Various components of this planning process are already in place. However, I accept that there is still much work to be done.
Vehicle emission controls and environmental fuel standards also have a vital contribution to make to reducing transport emissions. I recently introduced a range of new emission standards for different classes of new vehicles including heavy goods vehicles. These standards will greatly reduce emissions from all new vehicles. Ireland is fully up to date in regard to the implementation of all EU vehicle Directives. However, I would still emphasise that domestic coal burning is the major source of smoke emissions in urban areas. By tackling this directly, it has been shown, as in the case of Dublin, that we can achieve major and rapid reduction in such smoke emissions. Extending it to Cork will bring quick results in that area.
Senator Doyle mentioned benzene levels in petrol. We are aware of the concerns being expressed in the UK. The current EU and Irish standards fix a limit of 5 per cent for benzene content of petrol. Analyses conducted regularly by the State Laboratory indicate an average benzene content of 3.4 per cent in Irish petrol in 1993 and an average of 3 per cent in 1994 to date. These levels are obviously well within the required standards. This disproves the recent allegations made by Earthwatch that the average benzene content of Irish petrol is 4.8 per cent. Our monitoring system, which is modern and up to date, shows that it is 3 per cent in 1994 to date.
We have introduced a number of measures. The fitting of catalytic converters to all new petrol engined vehicles, as required by Irish regulations, will reduce benzene emissions by up to 75 per cent. This will contribute greatly to the overall improvement in benzene emissions. Nevertheless, we all share the growing concern about our exposure to benzene in the atmosphere and we will support relevant EU initiatives to improve our position in this regard. Initiatives under consideration at present at EU level include a significant reduction in the benzene content of petrol, controls on evaporative emissions from the gasoline distribution chain and additional controls on vehicle emissions. As soon as those are agreed at EU level, I can assure the House that we will take them on board and implement them immediately, as we have done with all other regulations to date.
I thank the Senators for their contributions and their words of welcome for the smoke ban in Cork.
