Results 6,281-6,300 of 9,814 for speaker:Steven Matthews

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Services (11 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: 116. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if a passport application by a person (details supplied) will be reviewed and expedited; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34164/23]

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Legislative Reviews (11 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: 417. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the position regarding the departmental review of the effectiveness of the Derelict Sites Act; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34241/23]

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Compulsory Purchase Orders (11 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: 425. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the position regarding compulsory purchase order powers of local authorities for the provision of housing; how this is being facilitated by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34305/23]

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Renewable Energy Generation (12 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: 48. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he will consider an adjustment to the tax exemption limit of €200 per annum for domestic solar microgeneration to further incentivise their installation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34482/23]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Exemptions (12 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: 91. To ask the Minister for Finance if he will consider an adjustment to the tax exemption limit of €200 per annum for domestic solar microgeneration to further incentivise their installation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34577/23]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Film Industry (12 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: 92. To ask the Minister for Finance the position regarding supports for the non-scripted television sector (details supplied) in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33494/23]

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: I thank the Chair for the opportunity to contribute. I am not a member of the committee, so I appreciate that opportunity, as I do the work of the EPA. I have been reading the EPA's reports for over 20 years. Going right back, I remember the 1999 environmental indicators report. It was one of those reports that made me sit up and say that something needs to be done about the degradation...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: I remember the name but it is very hard to pronounce.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: We have seen this trend where nitrates are in water. This is not a once-off test. This is not like going out and taking a water sample and testing it in a laboratory and saying, "There is a high level of nitrates here." We have seen this trend over the years and we can correlate those trends back to activities that happened in the catchment and contributed to the water quality. That is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: There is a health implication from nitrates. The evidence we see there is a connection back to agricultural run-off. What is the nature of the agricultural run-off that contributes to nitrates? Will the witnesses explain to people who might be listening and who might not be as familiar with the expertise that is in the room here? Would that be slurries, animal wastes, excessive use of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: Is it that certain soils, therefore, do not leech as much nitrates but free-flowing soils, especially where there are high volumes of cattle are a problem?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: That is a problem. That is highlighted on the map. Will Dr. Deakin just explain to me how phosphates get into our rivers and estuaries? What are the health implications of phosphates?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: When there are high phosphate levels we end up with eutrophied water systems that have the oxygen drained out of them. What is the impact that can have on that water when taken into a drinking water plant? Does a high level of phosphate impact on the process and the quality of the drinking water from that plant?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: I will just go back to nitrates. We often hear about E. coli. E. coli coliforms are everywhere but there is a particular strain of which indicates animal or human waste from the internal guts of animals or humans. How does that end up in our water systems? What is the human health implication of E. coli?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: Of course, one cannot separate human health from having a properly balanced and properly performing ecosystem. When there are damaged systems, it impacts on the aquatic ecology and the entire ecological food chain. We have discussed wastewater treatment plants today. Does Uisce Éireann set out all of the wastewater treatment plants for which it is responsible, the measures that are...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: I suppose Irish Water is very much dependent on centralised funding because it has no capacity to generate income from private use. On drinking water supplies and trihalomethanes, THMs, issues, from where do the organic loadings that react with chlorine come into the water supply?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: They are potentially cancerous.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: If we start to address the drying out of some of those peaty soils that have been excessively drained, we could reduce the organic loadings going into our water supplies and have a very positive effect in respect of THMs.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: Okay. That is the general overall health of our ecology and our human health. I know I am concentrating on the end user when we drink that water. It is, however, important to acknowledge that and look at it holistically.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Water Quality Monitoring Report: Discussion (19 Jul 2023)

Steven Matthews: That is great, Chair. I was just going to ask one more question. Is the reporting for the Commission a fairly standardised form of reporting that would be carried out in most European countries? Does the Commission set that out for the EPA?