Steven Matthews (Wicklow, Green Party)
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346. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the details regarding SI 664 of 2022, Planning and Development Act 2000 (Exempted Development) (Number 5) Regulations 2022; if the process whereby this was introduced will be outlined; the reason for same; and if a detailed explanatory note will be provided to all Members of the Houses of the Oireachtas, supplementary to existing briefing material. [4327/23]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Regulations entitled the Planning and Development Act 2000 (Exempted Development) (Number 5) Regulations 2022 were signed on 13 December 2022 by Mr. Peter Burke, T.D., Minister of State at my Department at that time, and came into effect on 14 December 2022.  

These Regulations were made under Section 4(4a) of the Planning and Development Act and provide for the insertion of a new Article (Article 8H) into the Planning and Development Regulations 2001.  Article 8H provides that the replacement of broadleaf high forest by conifer species in areas less than 10 hectares (in areas other than a city, a town or other specified areas), which is currently under Article 6(3) of the Planning and Development Regulations, remains exempted from the planning system even where an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and/or Appropriate Assessment (AA) is required. 

In accordance with Section 4(4A) of the Planning and Development Act, the EIA and/or AA will be carried out pursuant to licensing processes already in place under Section 6 of the Forestry Act 2014.  These Regulations were made at the request of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to avoid duplicate consenting regimes with the same purpose as regards environmental assessment being in place concurrently. 

As required by Regulation 42A of SI 477 of 2011, as amended, the Environmental Assessment Unit within the Heritage Division of my Department, carried out an Appropriate Assessment (AA) screening of the draft Regulations and confirmed that a full AA was not required.  The Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) screening process also confirmed that an SEA was not required. 

The replacement of broadleaf high forest by conifer species in areas less than 10 hectares (in areas other than a city, a town or other specified areas) is now exempt entirely from planning, including where an EIA and/or AA is required for that development, with the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Marine acting as the single consenting authority for any such projects in accordance with section 6 of the Forestry Act 2014.

A Circular issued to planning authorities on 19 December 2022 explaining the changes introduced by the Regulations.