Waste Management (Planning) Regulations, 1997 (S.I. No. 137 of 1997)
These Regulations specify matters to be addressed in local authority waste management plans.
Waste Management (Register) Regulations, 1997 (S.I. No. 183 of 1997)
These Regulations prescribe information to be entered in public registers to be maintained by local authorities and the EPA.
European Communities (Licensing of Incinerators of Hazardous Waste) Regulations, 1998 (S.I. No. 64 of 1998).
These Regulations implement EU Council Directive 94/67/EC on the incineration of hazardous waste. Waste Management (Amendment of Waste Management Act, 1996) Regulations, 1998 (S.I. No. 146 of 1998). These Regulations amend the scope of section 51(2) of the 1996 Act, concerning the recovery of sludges and agricultural waste.
Waste Management (Amendment of Waste Management Act, 1996) Regulations, 1998 (S.I. No. 146 of 1998).
These Regulations amend the scope of section 51(2) of the 1996 Act, concerning the recovery of sludges and agricultural waste
Waste Management (Movement of Hazardous Waste) Regulations, 1998 (S.I. No. 147 of 1998).
These Regulations provide for a system of consignment notes in respect of the movement of hazardous waste within the State and transpose certain related EU requirements into Irish legislation.
Waste Management (Transfrontier Shipments of Waste) Regulations, 1998 (S.I. No. 149 of 1998).
These replace 1994 Regulations made for the purposes of giving effect to Council Regulation (EEC) No. 259/93 on the supervision and control of shipments of waste within, into and out of the European Community, and provide for certain administrative details, in particular relating to enforcement.
Waste Management (Hazardous Waste) Regulations 1998 (S.I. No. 163 of 1998)
These regulations are derived from the EU Directive on Hazardous Waste and they put a duty on hazardous waste producers to keep specified records of any hazardous waste on their premises.
The record must contain the following information:
- Quantity, nature and origin of waste produced.
- Any treatment carried out.
- Quantity, nature, destination, frequency of collection and mode of transport of any hazardous waste transferred to another person. This information must be kept for at least three years and must be submitted for inspection when requested by the competent authority.
- When temporarily stored place of production, containers of waste and other packaging must be properly labelled. They must not be mixed with other hazardous or non-hazardous waste unless approval is given by Local Authority.
- These Regulations also set out additional provisions for substances such as PCB's, asbestos, batteries and waste oils.
The Waste Management (Hazardous Waste) (Amendment) Regulations 2000 make some changes to articles 9 and 10 regarding the mercury content of batteries. In addition the Waste Management (Movement of Hazardous Waste) Regulations 1998 provide for a system of consignment notes to govern the movement of hazardous wastes within the State.
Waste Management (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations, 1998 (S.I. No. 164 of 1998).
These Regulations provide for the permitting by local authorities of waste oil collection, and other miscellaneous matters.
Waste Management (Permit) Regulations, 1998 (S.I. No. 165 of 1998).
These Regulations provide for the granting of waste permits by local authorities in respect of specified waste recovery and disposal activities.
European Communities (Amendment of Waste Management Act, 1996) Regulations, 1998 (S.I. No. 166 of 1998).
These Regulations amend certain provisions of the 1996 Act for the purpose of enabling full effect.
Waste Management (Hazardous Waste) (Amendment) Regulations, 2000 (S.I. No. 73 of 2000)
The Waste Management (Hazardous Waste) (Amendment) Regulations, 2000 give effect to the provisions of Commission Directive 98/101/EC of 22 December 1998, which prohibits the marketing of all batteries and accumulators containing more than 0.0005% of mercury by weight, including those cases where the batteries and accumulators are incorporated into appliances. Button cells and batteries composed of button cells with a mercury content of no more than 2% by weight are exempted from this prohibition.
Waste Management (Prescribed Date) Regulations, 2001 (S.I. No. 390 of 2001)
These Regulations provide that 14 September 2001 is the prescribed date by which a waste management plan under section 22 of the Waste Management Act, 1996 must be made.
Waste Management (Collection Permit) Regulations, 2001 (S.I. No. 402 of 2001)
Under the regulations, a person running a waste collection business must apply for and receive a waste collection permit from the relevant local authority. A waste collection permit only allows the collection of waste within the geographical area covered by the waste management plan for the region or county concerned. Transporting waste without a collection permit is an offence, as is passing waste onto a person who is not authorised. Waste collection permits are reviewed every two years by the local authority.
It is essential that any businesses using a waste collector ensure that the collector has a valid waste collection permit. You should be able to check this by simply asking the collector for a copy of the collection permit. In the event of any doubt, you can check the position with the relevant local authority.
Waste Management (Environmental Levy) (Plastic Bag) Regulations 2001 (S.I. No. 605 of 2001)
These Regulations provide for the imposition of an environmental levy on plastic bags and provide for the arrangements for the collection of the levy and specify the times at which the levy shall be paid.
Waste Management (Farm Plastics) Regulations 2001(S.I. 341 of 2001)
This legislation put obligations on the manufacturers and importers of farm plastics to arrange ways of collecting and disposing of used plastic film (i.e. silage bale wrap and sheeting) in an environmentally friendly manner with a view to increasing the recycling of farm plastics.
The main points of the Regulations are as follows:
- The producer of farm plastics is obliged to collect or arrange for collection of farm plastics from farms.
- Purchaser of farm plastics must pay a refundable deposit to the producer when he receives the product.
- Producer must make a written statement to the purchaser indicating that the producer will repay the deposit (or part of it) in respect of farm plastics returned.
- The producer will make arrangements for the collection and transport of farm plastic within six weeks of a request by the purchaser.
- Each producer must register with the Local Authority within which they will supply plastic.
The Regulations place an onus on producers to operate their own take back scheme. However, they are exempt from setting up their own self-compliance scheme if they join the Irish Farm Film Producers Group Limited (IFFPG). This scheme is managed through REPAK and it provides a free plastic collection service to farmers. This service is funded by a levy, which is included in the sale price of the producer and forwarded to the IFFPG. Given that self-compliance is complex (i.e. operating a deposit and refund scheme) there is a great incentive to join the IFFPG. Since the IFFPG scheme was initiated in 1997 it has achieved a recovery rate of 45% but it aims to reach even higher with 60% recovery.
Waste Management (Landfill Levy) Regulations 2002 (S.I. 86 of 2002)
In an effort to reduce the amount of waste being disposed of in landfill, a landfill levy has been introduced. This legislation came into force on 1st June 2002 and it applies to all wastes delivered for disposal to a landfill site. The initial rate of the levy is ?15 per tonne. There are some exceptions from payment of the levy including:
- Waste from land reclamation activities and waste that is used for landfill site engineering works
- Waste arising from local community clean up activities
- Non-metallic residues from the shredding of ELVs, white goods and other metal wastes
- Excavation spoil comprised of sand, clay, gravel or stone that is used for landfill site engineering, restoration or remediation
Waste Management (Packaging) Regulations 2003 (S.I. 61 of 2003)
The main aims of the 1994 EU Packaging Directive were to reduce the overall impact of packaging on the environment, to harmonise the existing packaging legislation of Member States and to remove trade obstacles which may distort competition. The main targets set out by this Directive are:
- 25% recovery rate by 2001
- 50% (by weight) of all packaging waste should be recovered in Ireland by 2005
Ireland achieved a 25% packaging waste recovery target for 2001 but new additional efforts are required to achieve the 50% recovery target by 2005. The new Packaging Regulations, which came into effect in March 2003, are designed to assist in this effort.
They impose an obligation on all businesses, manufacturers, retailers, importers and distributors who place packaging on the market, to segregate specified waste materials that arise on their premises and have it collected by authorised waste operators for recycling. The types of materials that must now be segregated for recovery and recycling are: glass, cardboard, paper, steel, aluminium, plastic sheeting and wood.
he new Regulations also impose further obligations on major producers of packaging waste (a major producer is defined as one that places more than 25 tonnes of packaging on the Irish market per year and has a turnover of �Ǩ1 million or more). They now have additional obligations to either join the compliance scheme (Repak) or register for self-compliance with the Local Authority. If a business decides to self comply, they must accept or collect back packaging waste, while Repak membership means exemptions from doing so.
The other main points are:
- The regulations have expanded in scope to include packaging "consumed" on a producer's premises. This would include bottles sold and consumed in bars, clubs and hotels so these sectors are subject to the requirements of the regulations (See section 4 for more details on Repak).
- Segregated take-back facilities for packaging must be provided for customers by major producers not affiliated to Repak.
- In order to enhance visibility and awareness, specified signs must be displayed at all entrances to major producer's premises. In the case where a business self-complies the signage must give details of the arrangements for the deposit of packaging waste by customers at the premises or in the case of Repak members, the exemption of the producers from having to take back packaging waste from customers.
- Increased registration fees payable to local authorities by major producers not affiliated to the Repak scheme.
Waste Management (Licensing) Regulations 2004 (S.I. No. 395 of 2004)
These Regulations provide for the continued operation of the system of licensing by the Environmental Protection Agency of waste recovery and disposal activities under Part V of the Waste Management Act, 1996. The Regulations set out procedures for the making of waste licence applications, reviews of licences and consideration by the Agency of objections, including the holding of oral hearings.
These Regulations also provide for the licensing of mobile plant used for the recovery and disposal of waste at more than one site.
The Waste Management (Licensing) Regulations 2000 (save for articles 3 and 4 and the First Schedule), Waste Management (Licensing)(Amendment) Regulations 2001, Waste Management (Licensing)(Amendment) Regulations 2002 and European Communities (Amendment of Waste Management (Licensing) Regulations 2000) Regulations 2002 are revoked.
Waste Management (Packaging) (Amendment) Regulations 2004 (S.I. No. 871 of 2004)
These regulations amend the 2003 Packaging Regulations. The main change in the new regulations is an increase in the registration fees payable by self-complying 'major producers' to local authorities. The previous maximum fee of �Ǩ5,000 per premises from which packaging or packaging products are supplied has now been raised to �Ǩ15,000 per premises.