Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 July 2013
812. Deputy Michael McNamara asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if local authorities are exposed to a liability if they did not carry out prescribed reviews of discharge to waters authorisations for private wastewater treatment plants which were subsequently found to be dysfunctional and-or non-compliant.. [35193/13]
View answer813. Deputy Michael McNamara asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if all local authorities had carried out reviews of all section 4 discharge to waters licences by 22 December 2012; if the EPA had carried out reviews of all municipal wastewater treatment plants by 22 December 2012; if there is any obligation to carry out such reviews; if the European Commission has requested information from Ireland on these issues; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35194/13]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 812 and 813 together.
The Environmental Protection Agency is the statutory body responsible for the supervision of wastewater discharges from local authority wastewater treatment plants. The Agency is also the statutory body for investigating complaints of pollution and for the enforcement of environmental legislation in Ireland. Details of all prosecutions taken by the Agency for pollution incidents and details of its enforcement activities are published on the Agency’s website. Regulation 11 of the European Communities Environmental Objectives (Surface Waters) Regulations 2009 requires that not later than 22 December 2012, the terms of every authorisation, including licences issued under Section 4 of the Local Government (Water Pollution) Act 1977, be examined and a determination made as to whether the authorisation-licence requires to be reviewed. In accordance with Regulation 13, it is an offence not to comply with a requirement of the regulations.
All local authorities have completed their examination of Section 4 licences and have determined whether a review is required. While the majority of these reviews were completed by 22 December 2012, I understand that a number are still ongoing. In this regard, the Local Government (Water Pollution) Regulations 1978 and 1992 set down a procedure for reviewing Section 4 licences which provides for a requirement for statutory notices, time periods to respond to such notices and an appeals mechanism to An Bord Pleanála. The European Commission does not ordinarily request information regarding these issues but may make enquiries in relation to specific cases.
