The Industrial Pollution Control (Northern Ireland) Order 1997

Appeals as respects authorisations and against variation, enforcement and prohibition notices N.I.

15.—(1) The following persons, namely—

(a) a person who has been refused the grant of an authorisation under Article 6;

(b) a person who is aggrieved by the conditions attached, under any provision of this Order, to his authorisation;

(c) a person who has been refused a variation of an authorisation on an application under Article 11;

(d) a person whose authorisation has been revoked under Article 12;

may appeal against the decision of the enforcing authority to the Department (except where the decision implements a direction of the Department).

(2) A person on whom a variation notice, an enforcement notice or a prohibition notice is served may appeal against the notice to the Department (except where the notice implements a direction of the Department).

(3) Where a person appeals to the Department under this Article, the Department shall—

(a) determine the appeal; or

(b) refer the appeal for determination to the Planning Appeals Commission; or

(c) refer the appeal or any matter involved in the appeal to the Planning Appeals Commission and consider the report of the Commission before determining the appeal.

(4) Part I of Schedule 2 shall have effect where an appeal or any matter involved in an appeal is referred to the Planning Appeals Commission under paragraph (3)(b) or (c).

(5) Before determining an appeal in accordance with paragraph (3)(a), the Department may, if it thinks fit—

(a) refer any matter involved in the appeal to such person as the Department may appoint for the purpose, with or without payment; or

(b) cause the appeal to take or continue in the form of a hearing (which may, if the person hearing the appeal so decides, be held, or held to any extent, in private),

and the Department shall act as mentioned in sub-paragraph (b) if a request is made by either party to the appeal to be heard with respect to the appeal.

(6) On determining an appeal against a decision of an enforcing authority under paragraph (1), the Department—

(a) may affirm the decision;

(b) where the decision was a refusal to grant an authorisation or a variation of an authorisation, may direct the enforcing authority to grant the authorisation or to vary the authorisation, as the case may be;

(c) where the decision was as to the conditions attached to an authorisation, may quash all or any of the conditions of the authorisation:

(d) where the decision was to revoke an authorisation, may quash the decision;

and where the Department exercises any of the powers in sub-paragraph (b), (c) or (d), it may give directions as to the conditions to be attached to the authorisation.

(7) On the determination of an appeal under paragraph (2) the Department may either quash or affirm the notice and, if the Department affirms it, may do so either in its original form or with such modifications as the Department may in the circumstances think fit.

(8) Where an appeal is brought under paragraph (1) against the revocation of an authorisation, the revocation shall not take effect pending the final determination or the withdrawal of the appeal.

(9) Where an appeal is brought under paragraph (2) against a notice, the bringing of the appeal shall not have the effect of suspending the operation of the notice.

(10) Provision may be made by the Department by regulations with respect to appeals under this Article; and in particular provision may be so made—

(a) requiring appeals to be brought within such period as may be prescribed by, or determined under or in accordance with, the regulations;

(b) requiring appeals to be advertised in such manner as may be so prescribed;

(c) as to the manner in which appeals are to be brought; and

(d) as to the manner in which appeals are to be considered by the Department.