Ireland's State of the Environment Report 2024

350 Chapter 13: Environment and Industry Figure 13.13  Air emissions intensity of industry by country for 2015 and 2020 (based on particulate matter emissions) ˜ 2015 ˜ 2020 0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 EU Switzerland Denmark Germany Malta Ireland Austria Czechia Luxembourg France Netherlands Italy Hungary Sweden Belgium Slovakia Spain Finland Lithuania Slovenia Norway Cyprus Poland Croatia Greece Romania Estonia Iceland Latvia Türkiye Serbia Bulgaria Portugal grams per € Country Source: Eurostat 19 ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=SDG_9_-_Industry,_innovation_and_infrastructure&oldid=563873#Air_ emissions_intensity_of_industry (accessed 15 July 2024). 20 Emissions intensity is calculated by dividing the sector’s particulate matter emissions by its GVA, which is defined as output (at basic prices) minus intermediate consumption (at purchaser prices). As outlined in the section on surface water above, Ireland has a low proportion of heavy industry compared with its European counterparts. One of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 9.7) 19 compares air emissions intensity 20 with industrial economic output. Figure 13.13 shows that Ireland is ranked among the EU Member States with the lowest air emissions intensity of industry. 5. Cumulative impacts An important element when addressing the impact of an industry is to assess the expected impact of two or more nearby installations on the environment. The cumulative impact of pollutants caused by intensification of industry in a relatively small geographical area has the potential to cause localised exceedances of environmental quality standards or critical levels/loads (Topic Box 13.6). Impacts on amenity When not appropriately controlled, emissions from industry may directly reduce the amenity of the environment and of the local communities nearby. Indications of this impact are the levels and types of complaints that arise from members of the local community. The number of EPA-licensed industrial sites that are frequently complained about is small, with just 17 sites receiving ten or more complaints in 2023. Most complaints relate to odour and noise issues. Nuisance issues tend to have an impact on people’s amenity and private dwellings, and such issues often become emotive. The number and types of complaints received by the EPA between 2018 and 2023, in relation to EPA- licensed industry, are shown in Figure 13.14: 88% of all complaints related to nuisance odour and noise. Seven of the ten most complained about industrial facilities are situated in urban areas or within 500 m of residential areas.