Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 29 May 2013
163. Deputy Andrew Doyle asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will outline the regulations that enable local authorities to regulate and control the type of coal supplied in the State; the additional powers that are provided to local authorities in this regard and the type of fuel permitted for use in both residential and commercial premises; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25961/13]
View answerThe Air Pollution Act (Marketing, Sale, Distribution and Burning of Specified Fuels) Regulations 2012 regulate the sale of solid fuel in the State and provide the basis for the smoky coal ban . The main legislative provisions that apply inside smoky coal ban areas include: a ban on the marketing, sale, distribution and burning of smoky coal; a requirement to sell solid fuel in sealed bags with a printed notice; a requirement for commercial operators to maintain a register, if storing smoky coal for the purpose of placing on the market or on sale at a separate location outside the ban area; transportation of smoky coal in minimum quantities of 3 metric tonnes in Dublin or 1 tonne inside other ban areas; and retention of records by drivers of vehicles transporting smoky coal, detailing the type of fuel on board, who supplied it and to where it is being transported.
The Regulations also require that all smoky coal sold outside smoky coal ban areas for residential use outside those areas must have a sulphur content of no more than 0.7%. This consolidates the environmental and related human health benefits achieved by an earlier voluntary agreement with the Solid Fuel Trade Group (SFTG), representing the majority of major coal importers.
Coal bagging operators and certain solid fuel suppliers trading in smoky coal must be registered with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Those who must register include all fuel wholesalers and distributors of smoky coal but only those retailers for whom 50% or more of their total annual sales proceeds are from smoky coal. However, all retailers who trade in smoky coal must ensure that their fuel wholesalers are registered with the EPA and must hold a record to this effect with their supplier's registration number.
The Regulations are enforced by local authority authorised persons. Authorised persons may undertake inspections of premises and vehicles being used for the sale and distribution of solid fuel as well as collect samples. A local authority may bring a prosecution under section 11 of the Air Pollution Act 1987 for breaches of the Regulations. The maximum penalty for breaches of the Regulations is a fine of €5,000 and/or imprisonment for up to six months on summary conviction.
