Results 141-160 of 10,035 for speaker:Martin Cullen

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: There could be all sorts of implications. We do not want to introduce unnecessary bureaucracy into the system. What Senator Dardis has said is, in my view, correct. That possibility would be opened up, although that is not the intention of any of us. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: Section 94 is a new provision, which introduces new controls on the surrender of IPPC licences. The original 1992 Act had no such provision. It is important that there are such controls and that they are exercised before a licence is surrendered. While I appreciate the thinking behind the proposed amendment, it would be wrong to include a provision that would effectively compel someone who...

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: Senator Dardis is correct. The Bill goes further when it comes to illegal activities. Previously, if illegal activity was occurring, one had to prove to the High Court that this activity was causing pollution. Under the Bill, it is automatically deemed that pollution is occurring by virtue the fact that illegal activity is taking place. This shortens the process, dealing, to some extent, with...

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: In terms of the current legislation, the Senator is correct. However, this Bill changes the position so that people cannot just walk away. A process is now in place to ensure events such as those referred to by the Senator do not occur. The current situation is unclear and, therefore, I am bringing certainty to the law so that a company cannot just send the licence in the post and leave the...

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: This section will do so. The Senator is correct about the current situation, which is why I am introducing this legislation. I am more than meeting Senator Bannon's concerns, but we seem to be at cross purposes. Under this section, the EPA will be given an interventionist approach which will prevent people from walking away from their responsibilities, unlike the current position.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: Section 94 is a new provision which introduces new controls on the surrender of an IPPC licence, whereas the 1992 Act contained no such provision. It is important there are such controls and that they are exercised before a licence is surrendered. The EPA can make an assessment to see what has happened on the site and make determinations before the licence is surrendered, whereas there is no...

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: They can only surrender a licence under this Act, where the agency accepts that they can do so – they cannot just surrender it. The agency will be a determining factor in the surrendering of the licence because of its interventionist role under the legislation.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: We have laws to pursue them in that case.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: Yes. They cannot just walk away.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: The Senator can be more assured than that, under the legislation they cannot just walk away. I understand Senator Henry's concerns about companies simply disappearing, but that is the case in any area of life and we have powers under the Act to pursue them. This is the case with many other aspects of Irish law.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: I accept that. As a monitoring agency, the EPA should know exactly what is happening at all its IPPC licensed facilities.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: I have listened to the debate on this matter with great interest. Perhaps I am not getting through, even though I have repeated myself on numerous occasions, and Senator Dardis may have put it in more succinct terms. The criminal law deals with all sorts of activities in legislation. If people commit illegal acts, the criminal law is there to deal with them. The Bill identifies a weakness in...

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: Does the Senator not realise the effect of his amendment would be that where somebody is in default, to make good what he or she has done, the licence could still not be surrendered? That would not make sense, the Senator is insisting that an offender retain a licence. The logic of this has been lost somewhere.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: That is provided for in the Bill.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: While I do not mean to be argumentative, section 86(1)(a)(vii) provides that licence conditions have to be included in the licence on cessation and abandonment. The licence stays in force under section 95(1) and can only be surrendered if agreed to by the EPA. Furthermore, the EPA can keep enforcing the licence and adding conditions to it to make sure there is full compliance. There is more...

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: This section is a new provision which introduces new controls on the surrender of an IPPC licence. The 1992 Act contained no such provision. As it is important that there are such controls and that they are used, I have provided accordingly in the Bill. After the necessary inspection, monitoring and assessment, the EPA is called on in subsection (7) to decide whether the relevant installation...

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: Section 90 of the new Part 4 deals comprehensively with the mandatory circumstances, from Article 13 of the directive, in which a licence must be reviewed. These circumstances, in section 90(4)(a), are as follows: if emissions from the activity are deemed to be of such significance that existing emission limit values, parameters or technical measures need to be reviewed; if substantial...

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: I am sympathetic to the intention of this amendment. I propose to consider its implications further, in order to be certain, and to return on Report Stage with a suitably revised text for inclusion in the Bill. The points made by all Senators are reasonable, and I will certainly introduce that greater flexibility if possible.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: I take it the Senator is referring to paragraph (b) on pages 28 and 29 of the Bill. Those provisions are all part of the 1992 Act and are being repeated in this Bill to maintain consistency.

Seanad: Protection of the Environment Bill 2003: Committee Stage. (25 Feb 2003)

Martin Cullen: These provisions already exist in legislation. The only addition is environmental management systems; the rest was in the original Act. I added this merely to give certainty and a legal basis to what is already happening.