John Gormley
Ceist:106 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for the Environment Heritage and Local Government the measures he intends to put in place to limit the emissions, including dioxins, from unregulated private fires. [16641/03]
Written Answers. - Air Pollution.
Trevor Sargent
Ceist:126 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for the Environment Heritage and Local Government the measures he intends to put in place to control and regulate garden fires. [16638/03]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 106 and 126 together.
Under the Air Pollution Act 1987, the occupier of any premises, other than a private dwelling, is required to use the best practicable means to limit and, if possible, to prevent an emission of a pollutant into the atmosphere from such premises. In addition, the occupier of any premises is prohibited from causing or permitting an emission in such a quantity or manner as to be a nuisance. The Act empowers a local authority to serve a notice on the occupier of any premises from which there is an emission specifying the measures necessary to prevent or limit air pollution.
The Air Pollution Act 1987 (Air Quality Standards) Regulations 1987 specify current standards for, inter alia, suspended particulates, sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide. The Air Quality Standards Regulations 2002 specify new and more stringent standards for these and other pollutants to apply from 2005 to 2010. National policy for achieving air quality standards and emissions reductions is informed by the available air quality measurement data and interaction with the EPA and local authorities as appropriate. Air quality assessment is a matter for the agency and air quality management a matter for local authorities informed by air quality measurement data.
The Waste Management Act 1996 also places a general duty on the holder of waste not to hold, transport, recover or dispose of waste in a manner that causes or is likely to cause environmental pollution. Local authorities have specific powers under the Act to require measures to be taken to prevent or limit environmental pollution caused by the holding or disposal of waste and mitigate or remedy the effects on the environment of any such activity. In addition, section 20(5) of the Fire Services Act 1981 provides that a fire authority may serve a fire safety notice on the owner or occupier of land on which a flammable, explosive or potentially explosive substance is used, stored or deposited adjacent to buildings in such a manner as to represent a serious danger to life. The fire safety notice may require that specified measures be taken to reduce the level of danger. Under Part VII of the Local Government Act 1994, it is open to a local authority to make by-laws in the interests of the common good of the local community that any activity should be regulated or controlled.
As regards other measures designed to reduce emissions of smoke and sulphur dioxide from domestic fires, my Department and the solid fuel trade group, representing the principal importers and distributors of solid fuel in Ireland, signed a voluntary agreement on 5 June 2002 which provides for significantly more stringent sulphur limits in bituminous coal and petcoke. As part of this agreement I made the Air Pollution Act 1987 (Marketing, Sale and Distribution of Fuels) (Amendment) Regulations 2003 extending the ban on bituminous coal to an additional four urban areas – Bray, Kilkenny, Sligo and Tralee. That brings to 16 in total the number of such areas nationally. A copy of the agreement is available in the Oireachtas Library.
In this overall context, there are no specific plans to put in place additional measures regulating garden or domestic fires at this time. However, my Department is studying the findings of the recent EPA report on dioxins to pursue,inter alia, a progressive reduction in dioxin emissions where those are achievable in practice.