Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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114. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he is aware of the demand for an Environmental Protection Agency suboffice to be located in the Drogheda and east Meath area; the need to regularly monitor air in this area; and to increase public confidence, given the many heavy industries and number of incinerators in the area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12491/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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As a statutorily independent body, it is primarily a matter for the board of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to make decisions as to how best to organise its resources, including the location of its Regional Inspectorate offices. At present, they have Inspectorate offices located in Castlebar, Co Mayo; Inniscarra, Co Cork; Clonskeagh, Dublin; Kilkenny, and Monaghan. EPA licensed industrial activities located in the north-east of the country are enforced by staff from the EPA regional inspectorate in Clonskeagh, Dublin 4, which is approximately 55 km by road from Drogheda. Any complaints or incident reports received in relation to EPA licensed sites in the north-east are fully investigated by the EPA regional inspectorate and further enforcement activities are taken as and when required based on the finding of EPA investigations. This may include additional sites visits and monitoring, depending on the nature of the complaint or incident.

The independent review of the Agency, as presented to the Minster for the Environment, Community and Local Government in May 2011, specifically commented on the geographical locations of the EPA offices as follows: “The EPA’s regional structure involves a broad geographic spread, with resulting local knowledge and linkages as well as operational efficiencies in environmental monitoring operations and timeliness in response to incidents.”

In relation to monitoring of air emissions, all licensed sites with significant emissions to atmosphere are required to carry out monitoring of their emissions and report any non-compliant data to the EPA. In addition, the EPA carries out independent periodic testing of emissions from licensed sites. Monitoring reports and enforcement correspondence in relation to licensed facilities are available for viewing on public file.

A permanent particulate matter (i.e. dust) monitoring station was located in the Drogheda area from 2004 to 2009. The EPA also carried out a comprehensive assessment of air quality in Drogheda in 2002. Results for all pollutants measured were below EU limit values and were similar to levels in other Zone C towns (the 24 towns and cities in Ireland with a population greater than 15,000 people). Further information and results of the monitoring are available at www.epa.ie/air/quality/data.

More recently, the EPA carried out a comprehensive assessment of air quality in Balbriggan, another Zone C town in the North East, from March 2012 to June 2014. No EU limit values were exceeded during the measurement period. A detailed report on this assessment is available at www.epa.ie/pubs/reports/air/quality/.

A permanent monitoring station is located in Kilkitt, Co. Monaghan. Continuous automatic monitoring is performed for nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide and ozone. Particulate matter, heavy metals and Benzo (a) Pyrene are also measured at this station. Results for these pollutants were below EU limit values in 2014 as detailed in the report, Air Quality in Ireland 2014 – Key Indicators of Ambient Air Quality, available at www.epa.ie/air/quality/aqr/.

Going forward, the EPA has commenced preparation of a draft national ambient air monitoring programme under Section 65 of the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992 (as amended), which will provide the basis and options for the continued development and expansion of the national ambient air monitoring network.  The development of the national ambient air monitoring programme will include a review of the adequacy of the current network for both determining compliance with European and national standards for air quality and for the provision of information to the public about local air quality. The EPA expects to commence stakeholder consultation on the draft national ambient air monitoring programme later this year.