Vol. 524 No. 6
248 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the principal changes that he will introduce in the Environmental Protection Agency (Amendment) Bill which is expected to be introduced in mid 2001; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23535/00]
The primary objective of this Bill will be to amend the integrated pollution control licensing provisions of the Environmental Protection Agency Act, 1992, and the waste licensing provisions of the Waste Management Act, 1996. These amendments are necessary to give full effect in national law to EU Directive 96/61/EC on integrated pollution prevention and control – IPPC. The principal amendments will be to change the technical basis of the licensing systems from BATNEEC – best available technology not entailing excessive costs – to BAT – best available techniques; give more formal recognition to emission limit values – ELVs – as the operational basis of integrated pollution control licensing and waste licensing by the EPA; make additional provision for the impact of transboundary emissions to be considered and addressed in individual cases; provide for the adoption and application of general binding rules to replace individual licence conditions for certain categories of licensable activity; and provide for the EPA in determining licences to have regard to national or sectoral ceilings for emissions of pollutants or greenhouse gases.
The integrated pollution control and waste licensing regimes administered by EPA under the 1992 and 1996 Acts are well-established and substantially in line with the provisions of the IPPC directive. The amendments outlined are technical refinements to the legislative basis of both regimes in order to bring them fully into line with the directive.
I also propose to take the opportunity to include in the Bill a number of amendments to strengthen the Litter Pollution Act, 1997, details of which I hope to announce shortly.
