Ireland's State of the Environment Report 2024

352 Chapter 13: Environment and Industry Figure 13.14  Number of complaints received by the EPA about industry, by issue, 2018-2023 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 ˜ Noise ˜ Odour/Smell ˜ Water Quality ˜ Air Quality ˜ Vibration ˜ Other Year The sectors about which most complaints are received are the food and drink (56%) and waste (20%) sectors. Odour complaints peaked in April 2020. This peak may reflect people’s increased presence in their communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of the industrial sites experiencing high levels of complaints have residential areas right up to the site boundary. The closer proximity of housing to industrial sites does require operators to enhance their environmental performance to ensure that facility emissions do not give rise to nuisance issues. Local authorities, in exercising their zoning and planning functions, need to be cognisant of such issues when considering siting residential areas alongside industrial sites. 6. Unauthorised industrial activities All industrial activities that are included in the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992 (EPA Act 1992) require a licence from the EPA to operate. To ensure consistency and conformity with statutory requirements, the EPA actively pursues operators of industrial activities that either have not applied for or do not hold a current licence for their activities. Commercial peat extraction Peat extraction on a commercial level in Ireland involves the harvesting of peat from large areas of peatland for subsequent processing and use (Figure 13.15). Commercial peat extraction in Ireland is governed by a complex set of regulations, an outline of which is presented in Figure 13.16. The EPA regulates the larger activities (greater than 50 hectares) while local authorities have key roles in regulating all commercial peat extraction, specifically regarding planning permission and requirements to undertake Environmental Impact Assessment and Appropriate Assessment. Figure 13.15  Commercial extraction of peat