Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 20:

In page 79, between lines 15 and 16, to insert the following:“(3) A bond shall be created by the Minister to be distributed among relevant local authorities for the purposes of repair of any public infrastructural damage caused by access and other mining activities. This bond shall be financed by means of a levy on applicable licensees.”.

We know that mining can sometimes cause a lot of damage to local infrastructure, for example, due to heavy goods vehicles going in and out of mines, with the resulting damage to roads, bridges and local infrastructure. It is important that the local authorities are protected. While there are mechanisms such as development levies, we believe these levies do not offer sufficient protection for the local authorities in terms of financing remediation of the damage done by HGVs carrying heavy loads in and out of mines. By its nature, mining is an industry which involves heavy materials being transported by road. Huge damage is caused, as we see. We are putting forward this amendment to ensure this would be recognised and provided for into the future.

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