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

Ireland’s Environment – An Integrated Assessment 2020 2. European Assessment of Ireland’s Environmental Performance The European Commission’s 2019 Environmental Implementation Review The latest European Commission Environmental Implementation Review (EIR) paints a mixed picture of Ireland’s environmental performance. The Commission launched the EIR as a tool to identify implementation issues within Members States at an early stage and seek solutions before issues reach the stage of Environment The Environmental Implementation Review2019 COUNTRY REPORT IRELAND IRELAND © gettyimages, SAKhanPhotography infringements. The EIR comprises a 2-yearly cycle of analysis, dialogue and peer-to-peer support. The second EIR package, adopted in April 2019, includes 28 country reports, which map progress since the first EIR in 2017 and contain priority actions for each Member State. Ireland’s EIR for 2019 (EC, 2019b) notes that, in general, the country has good air quality, its soils are in good condition (with the exception of peat areas) and important steps have been taken towards a circular economy. It found that some progress has been made on the designation of Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and on drawing up conservation objectives for these sites, on air quality and reducing emissions, and on waste policy in applying economic instruments. The EIR for 2019 also identified several examples of good practice from Ireland, including good use of EU co- financing for environmental projects, especially through the LIFE programme and European Investment Bank loans, a very strong track record in environmental research and development and the availability of geographic information system data on ecosystems and their services. Despite the progress made, the EIR found that Ireland faces a number of significant environmental challenges, notably in the areas of water management, nature protection and access to justice. It noted that Ireland’s water services continue to cause concern, as evidenced by a low compliance rate with the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (91/271/EEC), problems with drinking water and below-average bathing water quality, while both the abstraction of water and hydromorphological changes are still not well controlled. The EIR identified that the significant gaps remaining in Ireland’s designation of SACs need to be addressed and conservation measures be established for all sites as a priority. It noted that, although Ireland has made progress in finalising the National Raised Bog SAC Management Plan and on protecting raised bogs, only slow progress has been made in protecting blanket bog sites. A number of priority actions for Ireland are identified in the EIR in the areas of water, air, nature, waste and the circular economy, and access to justice; these are highlighted in topic boxes throughout this chapter. Infringement Procedures for Breach of European Environmental Law Open infringement and European court cases against Ireland for breaches of environmental law mainly relate to failures in implementing nature, water and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) legislation. The Commission has the power to bring legal action – an infringement procedure – against Member States for failing to implement EU environmental law. These procedures can arise on the basis of the Commission’s own investigations or following complaints from citizens, businesses or other stakeholders. Infringement procedures follow a number of formal steps that require engagement between the Commission and the Member State. If the Member State fails to remedy the breach of European law, the Commission may decide to refer the matter to the European Court of Justice, which, in certain cases, can impose financial penalties. Most cases are resolved before being referred to the Court. Unresolved infringements indicate ongoing structural, administrative and legislative deficiencies in the implementation of environmental legislation and can be damaging to Ireland’s international reputation. As of 10 November 2020, there were 16 infringement cases and four European Court of Justice cases open against Ireland for breaches of environmental law, mainly relating to failures in implementing legislation on nature, water, EIAs and access to justice (Table 15.1). There are four current infringement cases under EU nature legislation, which relate to (1) a failure to classify Special Protection Areas (SPAs) under the Birds Directive (2009/147/EC; infringement 1998/2290 and C-418/04 – Commission v Ireland ); (2) peat extraction in the Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) protected areas (infringement 2010/2161); (3) the designation of SACs under the Habitats Directive (infringement 2015/2006, referred to Court 2 July 2020); and (4) the failure to establish penalties under European Commission Invasive Alien Species Regulations (infringement 2018/2319). With regard to EU water legislation, there are four current infringements, which relate to (1) non-conformity and shortcomings in the transposition of the Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC; infringement 2007/2238); (2) a failure to comply with the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (infringement 2013/2056 and C-427/17 – Commission v Ireland ); (3) a failure to comply with the Drinking Water Directive (98/83/EC) due to exceedances of trihalomethanes (THMs) (infringement 2017/4007); and (4) a failure to meet obligations on environmental quality 390