Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Question 492: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he intends to secure an exemption for the installation of new or refurbished pipe organs from the provisions of draft EU directives on waste electrical and electronic equipment and restrictions of the use of lead in electrical and electronic equipment; his views on whether organ pipes, which may be connected to electrically motorised air pumps and so covered by the terms of the directives, have been made from tin or lead alloy for centuries and that these constituent properties contribute to the tone and voicing of the instrument; if he has consulted with ecclesiastical authorities on the impact of the proposed directive; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17091/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The Directives in question are those on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and on the Restriction of the use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS).

In common with various other products, the question of whether organ pipes fall within the scope of both Directives is under consideration at EU level. Ireland's position, as advised to the European Commission, is that church organ pipes should be regarded as outside the scope of the Directives as the pipes themselves do not require electric current or electromagnetic fields to perform their primary function. Their function is dependent on pumped air and, where an electric pump is fitted, it is the pump itself that must comply with the new legal requirements. Such pumps placed on the market from 1 July 2006 onwards must not contain any hazardous substances prohibited by the RoHS Directive. Recent media reports suggesting that existing organs might have to be removed from churches are incorrect as the RoHS Directive only applies to new products being placed on the market from 1 July 2006. Given the foregoing, I do not consider it necessary to consult with possible interested parties at this stage.