S.I. No. 357/2024 - European Union (Installations and Activities Using Organic Solvents) (Amendment) Regulations 2024

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 2nd August, 2024.

I, EAMON RYAN, Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 3 of the European Communities Act 1972 (No. 27 of 1972) for the purposes of giving further effect to Chapters I, V and VII of Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2010¹ , hereby make the following regulations:

1. These Regulations may be cited as the European Union (Installations and Activities Using Organic Solvents) (Amendment) Regulations 2024.

2. The European Union (Installations and Activities Using Organic Solvents) Regulations 2012 (S. I. No. 565 of 2012) are amended —

(a) in Regulation 3(2), by substituting for the definition of “Minister” the following:

“‘Minister’ means Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications;”,

(b) in Regulation 26, by substituting for paragraph (1) the following:

“26 (1) An operator of an installation to which these Regulations apply who contravenes or fails to comply with Regulation 8, 9(2), 10(1), (6), (7) or (8), 11, 13(1), 19(1) or (3), 20(1), 22(8) or 24 commits an offence.”,

(c) by substituting for Regulation 27 the following:

“Penalties

27. An operator of an installation who commits an offence under Regulation 26 is liable on summary conviction to a class A fine.”,

(d) in Regulation 28, by deleting paragraph (2),

(e) by inserting after Regulation 28 the following:

“Fixed Payment Notice

28A. (1) Where an authorised officer has reasonable grounds for believing that a person is committing or has committed an offence under Regulation 26 (other than in relation to a contravention of Regulation 22(8)), the officer may give to the person a notice (in this Regulation referred to as a “fixed payment Notice”) in writing in the form specified in Schedule 9 stating that–

(a) the person is alleged to have committed the offence,

(b) the person may, during the period of 21 days from the date of the notice, make a payment of—

(i) if the alleged offence consists of a contravention of Regulation 8(1) or 24, the amount of €1,000, or

(ii) if the alleged offence consists of a contravention of any other provision, the amount of €500,

to the local authority concerned at the address specified in the notice and if required in the notice, accompanied by the notice or its reference number,

(c) the person is not obliged to make the payment specified in the notice, and

(d) a prosecution in respect of the alleged offence will not be instituted during the period specified in the notice and, if the payment specified in the notice is made during that period, no prosecution in respect of the alleged offence will be instituted.

(2) If a fixed payment notice is given under paragraph (1) –

(a) the person to whom the notice applies, or a person on his or her behalf, may, during the period specified in the notice, make to the local authority concerned at the address specified in the notice the payment specified in the notice and accompanied, if required in the notice, by the notice,

(b) the local authority concerned shall receive the payment and shall, upon receipt of the payment, issue a receipt for it and any payment so received shall not be recoverable by the person who made it and the local authority shall retain the money for disposal in accordance with paragraph (4), and

(c) a prosecution in respect of the alleged offence shall not be instituted in the period specified in the notice, and if the payment so specified is made during that period, no prosecution in respect of the alleged offence shall be instituted.

(3) In proceedings for an offence under Regulation 26 in respect of a contravention of these Regulations it shall be a defence for the defendant to prove that he or she has made a payment in accordance with this Regulation, pursuant to a fixed payment notice issued in respect of that contravention.

(4) Moneys received by a local authority pursuant to the giving of a fixed payment notice shall be lodged to the credit of the local fund maintained by the local authority concerned pursuant to, and in accordance with, section 97 of the Local Government Act 2001 and expended in accordance with that section.”,

and

(f) by inserting after Schedule 8 the Schedule set out in the Schedule to these Regulations.

3. The following are repealed:

(a) section 12C of the Air Pollution Act 1987 (No. 6 of 1987), and

(b) section 22 of the Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2015 (No. 29 of 2015).

4. The Air Pollution Act (Fixed Payment Notice) (Solvents) Regulations 2016 (S. I. No. 347 of 2016) are revoked.

Regulation 2(f)

SCHEDULE

“SCHEDULE 9

FIXED PAYMENT NOTICE

Reference No.__________

The European Union (Installations and Activities Using Organic Solvents) Regulations 2012

(S. I. No. 565 of 2012)

Fixed Payment Notice in relation to an alleged offence under Regulation 26 (other than in relation to a contravention of Regulation 22(8)) in respect of an alleged contravention of those Regulations.

Name of local authority: _______________________

Address of local authority: _________________________________________

To:

1. It is alleged that you have committed an offence under Regulation 26 of the European Union (Installations and Activities Using Organic Solvents) Regulations 2012 ( S.I. No. 565 of 2012 ). in respect of the alleged contravention of those Regulations and the fixed payment amount to be paid by you in respect of the contravention are set out in the Table below.

2. You may, during the period of 21 days beginning on the date of this notice, make a payment of the amount specified above, accompanied by this notice or its reference number, to the local authority at the address referred to above.

You are not obliged to make the payment.

A prosecution in respect of the alleged offence, will not be instituted during the period of 21 days beginning on the date of the notice and, if the payment specified in the notice is made during that period, no prosecution in respect of that offence will be instituted.

Signed ______________________ Authorised Officer __________________

Date ________________________

GIVEN under my Official Seal,

31 July, 2024.

EAMON RYAN,

Minister for the Environment,

Climate and Communications.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

These Regulations—

• Amend S. I. 565/2012 by providing for a new offence Regulation 26 and penalties Regulation 27.

• A fixed payment notice and form in respect of specified contraventions is also provided.

• Revoke the Air Pollution Act (Fixed Payment Notice) (Installations and Activities Using Organic Solvents) Regulations 2016 (S. I. No. 347 of 2016).

1 OJ No. L 334, 17.12.2010, p. 17