Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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190. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the current procedure and upcoming changes to the regulation surrounding the burning of old scrub and bushes off agricultural land; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [62164/22]

Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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Under the Waste Management (Prohibition of Waste Disposal by Burning) Regulations 2009, the burning of household, garden, commercial or industrial waste is not permitted. An exemption under the legislation, which has allowed farmers, as a last resort following strict application of the waste hierarchy, to dispose of waste generated by agricultural practices by burning has been extended on several occasions. However, it was never intended that this exemption would extend in perpetuity, and it is anticipated that the current exemption, which expires on 1 January 2023, will be the final such extension. My Department has engaged with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine on this matter and they have commissioned a feasibility study which will examine alternative measures to the burning of agricultural green waste within the Irish context and assess the practicality of such alternatives. The study, due for publication later this month, will help inform appropriate policy actions to establish alternative measures to burning on Irish farms.

The issue of air pollution and the associated health impacts caused by this practice is well established and is addressed in the draft Clean Air Strategy developed by my Department, which was open for public consultation until 3 May of this year. The final Clean Air Strategy, intended for publication in 2023, will provide the high-level strategic policy framework necessary to identify and promote the integrated measures across government that are required to reduce air pollution and promote cleaner ambient air while delivering on wider national objectives.