Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Question 618: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if it is currently the policy of his Department to designate buffer zones in the vicinity of proposed sewage treatment plants; if so, the procedural arrangements for the implementation of such policy with particular respect to notification of and consultation with affected landowners; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5161/07]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The planning, design and location of public wastewater treatment infrastructure are matters for the relevant local authority, subject to relevant requirements in relation to public consultation and planning approval. Detailed provisions relating to buffer zones have been prescribed by my Department. However, the European Communities (Waste Water Treatment) (Prevention of Odours and Noise) Regulations 2005, require wastewater treatment plants to be designed, constructed, operated and maintained so as to avoid causing nuisance through odours or noise.