Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)

Let us call a spade a spade. I am quite constrained in what I can answer here. The Senator will understand why. I will go through the detail now.

The EPA is an independent public body established under the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992. The purpose of the EPA is “to protect, improve and restore our environment through regulation, scientific knowledge and working with others”. This reflects its three core roles: as an environmental regulator; as a key source of trusted scientific evidence and knowledge; and as a voice for the environment through leadership, advocacy and collaborating and partnering with others to deliver better environmental outcomes. In carrying out its mandate, the EPA performs a wide variety of functions.

The key point to reiterate is that the agency is an independent public body established under the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992. As a result, it is entirely independent in the exercise of its functions, including enforcement, under that Act. While it would not be appropriate to speak to individual enforcement actions carried out by the agency, the enforcement of legislation that protects our environment should be supported.

The large-scale commercial extraction of peat is subject to planning legislation. Exemptions apply in specific circumstances and, depending on the scale of the activity, may necessitate the granting of an integrated pollution control, IPC, licence from the EPA. The regulatory regime is designed to control how the large-scale commercial extraction of peat takes place in order to ensure that the activity is carried on in an environmentally sound manner consistent with national and EU legislation. The EPA has been active in its efforts to control the unregulated large-scale peat sector and has committed to continue its enforcement actions in this regard. Details of the enforcement action taken by the EPA are set out in the agency’s Large Scale Illegal Peat Extraction report, which was published, as the Senator set out, in June. The report notes that the EPA was in the process of investigating 38 large-scale peat extraction operations over seven counties. The report also notes that the EPA engaged with the relevant local authorities in terms of the sector’s enforcement of environmental legislation and summarises the legislation that is applicable in the context of peat extraction, including with regard to planning, environmental impact assessment, appropriate assessment and IPC licensing.

As previously stated, while it would be inappropriate to speak to individual enforcement actions taken by the EPA, the enforcement of any legislation that protects our environment should be supported. Perhaps there is another forum at which the Senator might be able to bring in the EPA to go into the detail on the matter he has raised.