James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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208. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 81 of 26 October 2016, if there are regulations for the storage of sludge in respect of possible dangers to neighbours of the storage facilities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33702/16]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Provisions for the management and storage of organic fertiliser are contained in water protection and waste management legislation. Ireland's third National Nitrates Action Programme is given legal effect by the consolidated European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations 2014. The objective of the Regulations is to protect ground and surface waters, including drinking water sources, primarily through the management of livestock manures and other fertilisers. The Regulations set out the legal requirement for farmers to comply with good agricultural practice in the management of all fertilisers on their farms, including manures, slurries and sludge, and to ensure that they are stored in a manner that prevents run-off or seepage.

Furthermore, under the Waste Management (Registration of Sewage Sludge Facility) Regulations 2010, a local authority can issue certificates of registration for sewage sludge facilities registered in its functional area. Among the conditions that can be attached to such a certificate of registration is a requirement concerning the integrity of all storage tanks or storage bays and their maintenance and checking by a certified expert at reasonable intervals.