IRISH ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATION

The purpose of these Regulations is to streamline the administration of the legislation on the shipments of hazardous waste exclusively within Ireland so as to provide a better and more consistent level of implementation generally. In line with the external TFS system of control for shipments of waste from Ireland they provide for the designation of Dublin City Council as the sole competent authority responsible for the implementation of article 33 of the Waste Shipments Regulation (EC) No. 1013/2006 (the TFS Regulation) with effect from 1 July 2011. This will have the effect of linking both systems and facilitate better management controls on shipments of hazardous waste. In addition the internal tracking system will be an electronic system-as opposed to a paper based system which has applied up to the commencement of these Regulations. In addition, the Regulations: 1. give further effect to article 19(2) of the Waste Framework Directive (Directive 2008/98/EC) of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 November 2008 on waste and repealing certain Directives.( S.I. No. 419 of 2007 ) 2. amend the Waste Management (Shipments of Waste) Regulations 2007 ( S.I. No. 419 of 2007 ) to include a provision concerning the payment of prosecution costs to give further effect to article 50 of the TFS Regulation. 3. revoke provisions of the Waste Management (Hazardous Waste) Regulations, 1998 ( S.I. No. 163 of 1998 ). 4. revoke the Waste Management (Movement of Hazardous Waste) Regulations, 1998 ( S.I. No. 147 of 1998 ) but allow a transitional period until 31 December 2011 before this revocation takes effect-to facilitate the smoother running of the new electronic system and to allow companies who had forward purchased stocks of the old paper consignment note system (known as C1 forms) to use these stocks

These Regulations, European Communities (Waste Directive) (No. 2), Regulations 2011, make a small number of additional amendments to the Waste Management Act 1996 , omitted through typographical error, from the European Communities (Waste Directive) Regulations 2011 (S.I. 126 of 2011).

These Regulations transpose Article 37 of Directive 2009/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the geological storage of carbon dioxide and the amendments arising in relation to Council Directive 2008/1/EC concerning integrated pollution prevention and control. This requires that Directive 2008/1/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 January 2008 concerning integrated pollution prevention and control2 should be applied to the capture of carbon dioxides streams for the purpose of geological storage from installations covered by that Directive.

These Regulations may be cited as the European Communities (Environmental Liability) (Amendment) Regulations 2011.

These Regulations make provisions necessary for the purposes of full and effective implementation in Ireland of Regulation (EC) No 842/2006 on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases. The main provisions of the Regulations are: • Regulation 5 contains various requirements to be met by operators of stationary applications and equipment which contain certain fluorinated greenhouse gases, by producers, importers or exporters of certain fluorinated greenhouse gases and by companies taking delivery of greenhouse gases; • Regulation 6 provides for designation of a number of competent bodies to administer specific provisions of Regulation (EC) No 842/2006 in Ireland; • Regulation 7 provides for various responsibilities of competent bodies designated for the purpose of giving effect to Regulation (EC) No 842/2006; • Regulation 8 assigns duties to the Environmental Protection Agency as the competent authority for the purposes of Regulation (EC) No 842/2006; • Regulation 9 provides for appointment and various functions of an Authorised Officer; • Regulation 11 sets out qualification requirements for persons carrying out activities such as leakage checking, recovery, installation, maintenance or servicing of applications and equipment containing certain fluorinated greenhouse gases; • Regulation 12 sets out various offences for persons carrying out activities involving certain fluorinated greenhouse gases without appropriate qualifications or for their failure to comply with the provisions of these Regulations, or Regulation 842/2006 or its implementing regulations; • Regulation 13 a person found guilty of an offence shall be liable upon summary conviction to a fine not exceeding a Class A fine or imprisonment for a term of up to one year or both, or upon conviction on indictment, to a fine of up to 500,000 or imprisonment for a term of up to three years, or both; • Regulation 14 provides for procedures for prosecution of offences by the Environmental Protection Agency; • Regulation 15 provides arrangements for the payment of costs of a prosecution to the Environmental Protection Agency.

These Regulations designate the Environmental Protection Agency as the Competent Authority for the purpose of implementing Commission Regulation (EC) No 842/2006, Commission Regulation (EC) No 1493/2007, Commission Regulation (EC) No 1494/2007, Commission Regulation (EC) No 1497/2007, Commission Regulation (EC) No 1516/2007, Commission Regulation (EC) No 303/2008, Commission Regulation (EC) No 304/2008, Commission Regulation (EC) No 305/2008, Commission Regulation (EC) No 306/2008, Commission Regulation (EC) No 307/2008, and Commission Regulation (EC) No 308/2008, on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases.

These Regulations set out the functions of the Agency in relation to maintaining registers of coal bagging operators and fuel suppliers for the purpose of ensuring compliance with environmental parameters for bituminous coal as prescribed in Regulations made separately under the Air Pollution Act 1987 .

These Regulations transpose the provisions of Directive 2010/26/EU, which amends Directive 1997/68/EC relating to the measures against the emission of gaseous and particulate pollutants from internal combustion engines to be installed in non-road mobile machinery, inland waterway vessels, railcars and locomotives, and to secondary engines fitted into vehicles intended for passenger or goods transport on the road. The Regulations provide for an extension of the time period derogation for the implementation dates of stage II emission limit requirements for specified engine classes and provide for the update of the Annexes to Directive 1997/68/EC as amended by Directive 2010/26/EU. As Directive 2010/26/EU also provides for the insertion of Section 8 to Appendix 1 of Directive 97/68/EC, these Regulations also provide for the mandatory type approval of electronically controlled engines covered by Directive 97/68/EC.