Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 488: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the unit within his Department or agency under his remit that monitors the instances of pyrite problems in recently constructed buildings; if this is a new occurrence; the total incidences in private construction projects and local authority projects for each of the past five years; the percentage of building projects which are local authority sponsored; the guidelines or recommendations on construction type which his Department has issued to avoid or minimise pyrite problems; if type of foundations, type of flooring or cement rather then wood would maximise the problems; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36763/09]

Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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The position in this matter has been set out in replies to previous Questions, most recently in reply to Question No. 728 of 9 July 2009.

The issue of pyrite was brought to the attention of my Department in mid 2007. Having consulted the statutory Building Regulations Advisory Body, my Department issued a circular letter (Ref. BC 6/2007) to each county manager and local building control authority on 16 August 2007 to bring the issue of pyrite to their notice and to request co-operation in the enforcement of the relevant requirements set out therein. The circular also brought to their attention a notice issued by Fingal County Council on 26 July 2007 on this matter.

Following an intervention from my Department, the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) proceeded to publish a new amended Standard Recommendation on the use of aggregates as infill for civil engineering and road construction work. The new Standard Recommendation came into effect on 7 December 2007 and it is intended to address the quality standards of new homes and buildings insofar as problems relating to pyrite are concerned. My Department incorporated this NSAI Standard Recommendation into the relevant Technical Guidance Document (TGD-C) of the Building Regulations. A copy of the relevant amendment to TGD-C is available on my Department's website at www.environ.ie. My Department has also notified Local Authorities, the Construction Industry Federation, the Irish Home Builders' Association and other key stakeholders of the provisions of the amended TGD-C. In addition, I am aware that HomeBond has included the amended NSAI Standard Recommendation in their published 6th edition of the House Building Manual.

Responsibility for compliance with the Building Regulations is a matter for the owner or builder of a building. Enforcement of the Building Regulations is the responsibility of individual Building Control Authorities.

I am satisfied that the measures outlined represent an appropriate response by my Department to the issue. The resolution of problems arising between building owners and builders is a matter for the parties concerned, namely, the building owner, the relevant developer, and the builder's insurers. Where the construction of a building is the subject of a contract between the client – the housing authority in the case of publicly funded housing - and the builder, enforcement is a civil matter. My Department does not gather statistics relevant to the question.