Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 9 December 2004
35 Mr. O’Shea asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the progress made by his Department, in co-operation with the authorities in Northern Ireland, in the investigation into illegal cross-Border dumping; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32674/04]
View answerTackling illegal cross-Border dumping is a key priority in the overall intensification of enforcement against illegal waste activity and one which is being pursued vigorously. I am satisfied that effective co-operation is being developed between the respective authorities in dealing with illegal cross-Border movements of waste. While enforcement is a matter for the local authorities and the Office of Environmental Enforcement, OEE, I will continue to ensure that the regulatory framework and the resources available are appropriate to deal with the problem.
Significant powers are available to local authorities under the Waste Management Act 1996 to enable them to tackle illegal waste activity and they were further strengthened by the Protection of the Environment Act 2003. These include powers, for example, to halt vehicles, inspect premises and examine records, which are of central importance in dealing with the smuggling of waste. Maximum penalties attaching to illegal waste activities are also substantial —€15 million and/or a ten year jail sentence.
To further assist local authorities in acting on these powers, over €7 million has been allocated from the environment fund to support a more vigorous approach to environmental enforcement, with a particular emphasis on combating dumping and other unauthorised waste activities. This is now being reflected in the presence of additional enforcement personnel on the ground.
I have met with the director general of the Environmental Protection Agency, within which the OEE is located, and have stressed the importance I attach to its work. The office is well placed to mobilise a co-ordinated national response across all local authorities to this national priority. Those involved in environmental crime do not respect local authority boundaries or, indeed, national frontiers and our response to them must be as comprehensive and sophisticated as possible.
A major study has been commissioned by the OEE to establish and document the extent of unauthorised waste activities in Ireland. The objectives of the project are to review and document current procedures and practices used by the relevant authorities to investigate unauthorised waste activities, as well as the use of powers available to tackle unauthorised activities. I will carefully consider the results of this study to identify any further actions that may be necessary in consequence of its findings.
The OEE has established an unauthorised waste working group, including representatives of the local authorities, the Northern Ireland authorities and my Department, whose functions include co-ordination of enforcement actions against companies and individuals involved in the illegal movement and disposal of waste in Ireland. Information and recommendations emerging from this process support a systematic plan of action to tackle offenders.
A further milestone for the OEE was the consolidation of environmental enforcement activity through the establishment of a national enforcement network. This network is harnessing the collective resources, expertise and investigative capacity of all the players engaged in stamping out illegal activity in Ireland. The network pools and co-ordinates the resources of the local authorities, the national bureau of criminal investigation of the Garda Síochána, the Environment and Heritage Service in Northern Ireland and my Department. This is resulting in a step up in actions against unauthorised waste movement, including roadblocks and inspections of suspect facilities. One such targeted exercise took place on 30 November 2004.
