EPA - Ireland's Environment, An Integrated Assessment - 2020

Ireland’s Environment – An Integrated Assessment 2020 Table 9.4 Enforcement responsibilities in Ireland, 2020 REGULATOR RESPONSIBILITIES EPA Enforcement of licensed activities – all disposal activities, all hazardous waste and incineration activities. Recovery activities over thresholds set out in legislation. Enforcement of certificate of registration sites issued to local authorities. Local authorities Waste enforcement regional lead authorities (WERLAs) Three regions (Eastern Midlands, Southern and Connacht-Ulster) with lead local authorities that coordinate local authority waste enforcement actions. 31 functional areas Enforcement of permitted waste facilities (recovery activities below certain thresholds set out in legislation) and certificate of registration sites issued to private sector. Enforcement of waste collection permits, which are authorised by the National Waste Collection Permit Office at Offaly County Council. National TransFrontier Shipment Office at Dublin City Council Competent authority for imports and exports of waste and transport of hazardous waste within Ireland. Waste Enforcement Multiple agencies have roles and powers to enforce and direct the enforcement of waste legislation. The EPA and local authorities have statutory responsibilities for authorising and enforcing waste collection and management activities (Table 9.4). More than 4000 authorisations (licences, permits, certificates of registration) are in force for waste collection, storage, treatment and transfrontier shipment. The number of permitted waste collectors fell from over 3000 to 2104 in 2018, indicating consolidation of the sector (EPA, 2020a). Funding from the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment (DCCAE) to support waste enforcement was €11.48 million in 2019 (up from €10.23 million in 2018) (DCCAE, 2020b). The EPA’s waste enforcement approach is governed by a compliance and enforcement policy (EPA, 2019b). The non-hazardous waste transfer sector accounts for the highest number of operational waste sector licences to be enforced (Table 9.5) and across all sectors licensed by the EPA; this sector ranked second highest for non- compliances in 2017 and 2018 (after the food and drink sector). Between January and June 2020, four of the eight licensees featured on the EPA’s national priority sites for enforcement were waste licensees (EPA, 2020d). Eleven prosecutions of waste licensees have concluded in convictions from 2016 to date, one involving the Director of Public Prosecutions (EPA, 2020e). 236