John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

On foot of a commitment in the programme for Government, a review of the EPA began in February 2010. Under its terms of reference, the review group has been asked to review the legislation governing the EPA, assess performance against its mandate and evaluate the scope of that mandate, review the resources allocated to the EPA, assess the structures and governance of the agency and assess the relationship between it and other parts of the environmental governance structure. The review group members are drawn from a varied background and include environmental, legal, academic, business and agriculture experts. The group also includes former directors of the Irish EPA and its Dutch counterpart.

A public consultation process in respect of the review was held earlier this year and received more than 130 submissions. The review group, as part of its ongoing work programme, also consulted with a wide range of stakeholders, including environmental non-governmental organisations, the IFA, IBEC, Departments, other public bodies, the City and County Managers Association and the EPA. The group's work is ongoing and it is expected that it will finalise its report by the end of the year and report to me shortly thereafter. Clearly, there will be a need to consider carefully the group's recommendations, on which I do not intend to speculate or pre-empt.

The review group has adopted a thematic approach which includes an examination of the licensing framework, both in terms of the EPA's role and the legislation that governs it. Waste facilities operate under waste licences issued by the agency, with these licences being subject to stringent conditions regarding the operation of such facilities. The need for strong enforcement action has been aided by ministerial policy directions that issued in May 2005 and July 2008 providing guidance where illegal deposition is discovered. I am concerned about any facility that is causing environmental pollution, but there is adequate legislation in place for the regulatory bodies to deal with such matters.

The Government is committed to ensuring an adequate enforcement response to illegal waste activity and I would point to continuing support from the environment fund towards enforcement staffing costs. This funding of more than €7.5 million has been used to finance the activities of 120 additional local authority enforcement personnel. I also hope to provide additional funding this year of up to €1 million to cover the additional enforcement costs of local authorities.

The EPA plays a key role in monitoring, maintaining and improving Ireland's environmental performance. Accordingly, a high level of importance is attached to this review. Good environmental governance is a key priority for the Government as a whole, in particular as an essential element of sustainable development. The review is also important in the context of the Transforming Public Services agenda and the need for efficiency and effectiveness in a resource-constrained environment. The ultimate aim of the review is to strengthen the agency and I look forward to the finalisation of the review group's report.

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