Chapter 15 Waste and Environmental Emissions

15.0 Introduction
 

The issue of waste disposal and damaging emissions to the environment is recognised by Wicklow County Council as one of the most problematic areas of environmental management. Waste and emission generation is directly linked to trends in consumption and output, reflecting population growth and household formation, the level of manufacturing, industrial and agricultural activity, and overall economic performance. The waste produced from the above activities can be quite diverse requiring consideration of a wide range of environmental, technical, economic and market related issues in order for it to be efficiently managed. 

This chapter of the plan will address solid and hazardous waste management, emissions to the air, as well as noise and light pollution, while water pollution / water quality is addressed separately in Chapter 13.  

With reference to the National, Regional and County Objectives set out in Chapter 2 of this plan, the appropriate management of wastes and emissions will contribute to numerous goals across the three pillars of ‘sustainable healthy communities’, ‘climate action’ and ‘economic opportunity’ by: 

-    Creating a clean environment for a healthy society;
-    Ensuring adequate capacity and systems to manage waste in an environmentally  safe and sustainable manner;
-    Addressing air quality in urban and rural area through better planning and design;
-    Incorporating consistent measures to avoid, mitigate and minimise or promote the pro-active management of noise;
-    Promoting environmentally sustainable development in terms of location, layout, design, energy and water usage, reduction and safe disposal of wastes.

15.1 Context

The following directives, national primary and secondary legislation, strategies / plans and guidelines influence the objectives and standards of this plan insofar as they are relevant to a land use plan: 

15.1.1 Environmental Protection Agency Acts 1992 & 2003 
EU Integrated Pollution Prevention & Control Directive (Directive 96/61/EC) 

The 1992 Act addresses the prevention, limitation, elimination, abatement or reduction of environmental pollution, as well as the preservation of the quality of the environment, and for the purposes of the Act, environmental pollution means: 

a)    air pollution,
b)    water pollution,
c)    the disposal of waste in a manner which would endanger human health or harm the environment by creating a risk to waters, the atmosphere, land, soil, plants or animals, causing a nuisance through noise or odours or adversely affect the countryside or places of special interest, or noise which is a nuisance,
d)    activities that would endanger human health or damage property or harm the environment.

The IPPC Directive was transposed into Irish law in 2003 with the enactment of the Protection of the Environment Act, 2003.  While the 1992 Act anticipated and implemented most of the requirements of the Directive, the PoE Act 2003 made legislative provision for the remaining elements.  

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