Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 41:

In page 83, to delete lines 8 to 15 and substitute the following: "(6) (a) The holder of a MAC to which section 75(1) applies shall, not later than three months before undertaking any development the subject of such permission and which is for the purposes of the maritime usage the subject of the MAC, make an application under section 86(1) to amend the MAC by way of attaching a schedule to the MAC setting out the particulars specified in paragraph (b) for the purposes of this paragraph."

Deputies may recall that when we introduced amendments Nos. 180 and 181 on Committee Stage in relation to sections 96 and 97, it was flagged to the committee that it may be necessary to make a further amendment on Report Stage. This is the flagged amendment and amounts to some minor technical changes which are necessary to ensure efficient operation of these sections. This amendment deletes section 96(6)(a) and inserts a new subsection in its place. The purpose of this amendment is to remove the requirement to make an application to the MARA within six months of the granting of development permission to amend the MAC for the purposes of submitting the rehabilitation schedule. In instances where there may be a ten-year planning permission for significant infrastructure with a long and detailed design phase, it is not practicable to submit a rehabilitation schedule in just six months following the granting of planning permission. It is sufficient that the application to amend the MAC by attaching the rehabilitation schedule is made not later than three months before the commencement of development. This will also cover smaller developments that may well be ready within six months of a grant of permission. This provision in full ensures that the planning authorities, and not the MARA, are properly positioned as the environmental decision maker in relation to maritime development, including rehabilitation, and can require a MAC to be amended to accommodate any environmental mitigation.

See this speech in context