Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 1018: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if further towns are to be added to those with a ban on bituminous coal; the assessments being carried out to ensure that towns that may be in need are being considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14674/07]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The ban on the marketing, sale and distribution of bituminous coal currently applies in 16 urban areas nationally. The selection of these areas took account of air quality monitoring data and population size. In April 2006, my Department and the Solid Fuel Trade Group signed a new negotiated agreement concerning further reductions in the sulphur emissions of bituminous coal and petcoke, and the maintenance of existing limitations through smokeless zones on the marketing, sale and distribution of solid fuels.

The new agreement follows on from a previous agreement put in place in 2002 and runs until the end of the fuel season in April 2008. The new agreement locks in place the significant environmental gains achieved by the first agreement through ambitious limits on sulphur levels in bituminous coal and petcoke. The advantage of this approach is that it ensures that all solid fuel is cleaner, which should lessen the overall impact of such fuels on air quality.

Under the new agreement, there is at present a temporary moratorium on the designation of further coal ban areas during the life of the agreement, except where required to ensure adherence to air quality standards. My Department has requested local authorities to maintain a high level of vigilance with regard to air quality in their areas and to be notified immediately of any problems with local air quality which may be caused by the use of solid fuels.