The framework for much environmental regulatory legislation Dr Yvonne Scannell

Formulation of Policies ä Sixth EU Action Programme ä Irish Strategy for Sustainable Development ä Changing Our Ways ä Policies are indicative of political commitment ä Resources are allocated to favoured policy areas

Absence of policies ä Lack of political commitment ä Framework for decision making diminished ä Fragmented and inconsistent decisions ä Decision makers have no guidance on their overall objectives ä If no policy, no resources

Outline ä Policies ä Plans ä Civil and criminal penalties ä Prior Authorisations Legal and other enforcement mechanisms

Civil and Criminal Sanctions for doing or not doing something ä Increasing all the time ä Citizen enforcement in Ireland ä Strict liability for many regulatory offences (i.e. doesn’t matter if offender was morally innocent)

Examples ä Criminal offence to develop land without planning permission or to contravene a planning permission or a condition attached to it. ä Civil remedies can be used against the illegal developer e.g warning or enforcement notice or s.160 injunction.

Env Legislation requires Management Plans/Programmes ä Development plans - Planning Acts ä Water quality management plans- Water Pollution Act ä Air quality management plans- Air Pollution Act ä Waste management plans- Waste Management Acts ä Habitats – appropriate plans and programmes to protect habitats

Features of most management plans ä Rights to information ä rights to public participation ä Rights for NGOs to participate ä Involvement of expert bodies and stakeholders ä Integration with other plans ä Democratically adopted except where elected members won’t do the job properly

Effects of authorisations ä They provide a method of controlling /improving an activity ä They can often be reviewed or revoked ä They are on the public record ä They are often enforceable by any member of the public

Environmental standards ä Amount of SO2/lead in the air. ä Standards for drinking, bathing, surface waters

standards in other prior authorisations ä Regulatory bodies may set standards which must be complied with or ä Targets for achievement or ä Incentives or disincentives ä EPA requires Annual Environmental Report to include planned improvements

Enforcement techniques ä Information, training, encouragement soft approaches ä Administrative enforcement ä Judicial enforcement ä - in courts ä - criminal and civil sanctions ä Judicial review

Economic incentives and disincentives ä Polluter pays principle ä grant aids to encourage ä EMAS, ISO 14001, IS 310/95 ä Pollution taxes e.g. carbon tax, waste charges, water charges ä Green purchasing or investing policies ä Targets in authorisations

Procedural techniques in regulation ä Access to information ä Public/NGO/Specialist body participation in making decisions ä Consultation requirements ä Access to justice ä DIRECTIVE 2003/35/EC... DIRECTIVE 2003/35/ECDIRECTIVE 2003/35/EC ä EIA and SEA ä Black and white lists ä Naming and shaming ä Reports before Oireachtas

Access to information ä Provided for in many statutes which require registers etc to be kept ä FOI Act 1997 ä plus ä Access to Information on the Environment Regs 2007

FOI Who must supply the information? ä Local authorities, harbour boards, health boards, other statutory boards ä companies where a Minister or a Minister’s directors hold all the shares

Provided those bodies “ have public administration functions and responsibilities and possess information relating to the environment”

Access to Justice – Aarhus Convention ä Locus standi for judicial reviews ä Public participation in environmental decision- making ä Requires costs of participation to be reasonable ä Ireland leads Europe in much of this area. ä Eg New requirements on costs of participation in Strategic Infrastructure Act 2006/2010/2011 Acts