Vol. 515 No. 3
58 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the plans, if any, he has to transfer responsibility for certification of waste incineration plants from his Department to the Environmental Protection Agency; the plans, if any, he has to make provision for this in the new EPA Bill; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5965/00]
Currently, waste incineration facilities are licensable by the EPA under relevant provisions of the Environmental Protection Agency Act, 1992 and the Waste Management Act, 1996 and related regulations.
An application to the EPA for a waste licence, under the Waste Management (Licensing) Regulations, 1997, must be accompanied by an environmental impact statement where the facility is of a class that requires an environmental impact statement under article 24 of the European Communities (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations, 1989 to 1996. Waste incineration facilities subject to licensing under the Environmental Protection Agency (Licensing) Regulations, 1994 must also be accompanied by an environmental impact statement where the facility is of a class that requires an environmental impact statement.
Following the Local Government (Planning and Development) (No. 2) Regulations, 1999 no such environmental impact statement is subject to certification by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government. Under planning, EPA, and waste management legislation, the Minister for the Environment and Local Government is precluded from exercising any power or control in relation to any planning application or appeal, or any integrated pollution control or waste licence.
I am currently considering the overall arrangements in relation to these matters in the context of the planning Bill currently before the House and the forthcoming Environmental Protection Agency (Amendment) Bill.
