The Landfill Allowances Scheme (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2004

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order.)

These Regulations are made under the Waste and Emissions Trading Act 2003 (“the Act”) for the purpose of implementing Articles 5(1) and (2) of Council Directive 99/31/EC on the landfill of waste in Northern Ireland. They make provision for implementing Part 1 of the Act (waste sent to landfills) including the landfill allowances scheme under that Part. The Regulations come into operation on 1st April 2005.

Part 1 sets out the general provisions. Regulation 1 concerns the citation, commencement and application of the Regulations and Regulation 2 deals with interpretation. Regulation 3 is concerned with the giving and submission of various documents and provision is made for electronic communications and the use of websites. Regulation 4 also enables the use of electronic registers and the provision of electronic forms.

Part 2 includes provisions on the allocation, borrowing and transfer of landfill allowances. After the Department of the Environment (“the Department”) has made an allocation of landfill allowances under section 4 of the Act, Regulation 5 requires the monitoring authority to assign reference numbers to those allowances and to allocate them to the landfill accounts of district councils.

Regulations 6 and 7 concern the borrowing and transfer of landfill allowances. Under regulations 6 and 7, requests must be submitted to the monitoring authority before landfill allowances can be borrowed or transferred. Provided the relevant conditions in regulations 7(8) and 8(8) are satisfied these requests will be accepted. Regulation 8 enables the Department to suspend district councils from borrowing and transferring landfill allowances in the circumstances in Regulation 8(1) and (2).

Part 3 concerns the monitoring of the landfill allowances scheme. Regulation 9 provides that the person for the time being holding the position of head of Waste Management and Contaminated Land of the Environment and Heritage Service of the Department is the monitoring authority for Northern Ireland, and consequently that authority is subject to the duties in section 10(2) of the Act. Regulation 13 requires the monitoring authority to calculate how much biodegradable municipal waste is sent to landfill by each district council in a scheme year, and regulation 14 requires the monitoring authority to reconcile this amount with the district council’s allowances for that year. Assumptions about the amount of biodegradable waste in amounts of waste apply in relation to specified functions of the monitoring authority (regulation 12 and the Schedule to the Regulations).

Regulations 10 and 11 impose obligations on district councils and landfill operators to keep specified records and make specified returns to the monitoring authority. The information in the returns is necessary to enable the monitoring authority to carry out his functions under the Act and the Regulations.

Part 4 contains provisions on registers. The monitoring authority must maintain a landfill allowances register (regulation 15), and the Department must maintain a penalties register (regulation 16). Under regulation 18 these registers must be made available for inspection by members of the public, who may also obtain copies of any entries on payment of a reasonable charge. Regulation 17 enables the monitoring authority and the Department to amend incorrect information on a register.

Part 5 contains provisions on penalties. Regulations 19 and 20 specify how penalties under sections 9 (failure to comply with duty not to exceed allowances) and 12(3) (failure to comply with requirements imposed under regulation 10 of these Regulations) of the Act are calculated. Regulation 21 makes provision for when penalties are due and for interest in the event of late payment.

Part 6 concerns guidance. Regulation 22 requires district councils to have regard to any guidance issued by the Department in exercising functions in relation to biodegradable municipal waste.

A transposition note setting out how the Department will transpose Articles 5(1) and (2) of the Landfill Directive into law in relation to Northern Ireland has been prepared and copies can be obtained from The Landfill Team, Environmental Protection Division, Environmental Policy Group, Department of the Environment, 20-24 Donegall Street, Belfast, BT1 2GP. A copy has been placed in the library of each House of Parliament and of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

A full regulatory impact assessment of the effect that this statutory rule will have on the costs of business has been prepared for these Regulations. Copies can be obtained from the Landfill Team, Environmental Protection Division, Environmental Policy Group, Department of the Environment, 20-24 Donegall Street, Belfast, BT1 2GP. A copy has been placed in the library of each House of Parliament and of the Northern Ireland Assembly.