The extension to the exemption under waste management rules which allows farmers to burn green waste this year has been signed by Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications Eamon Ryan.
His department said today (Friday, February 11) that a further one year extension has been made for the exemption, confirming what Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue told an Oireachtas committee on February 2.
The exemption allows farmers to burn green – or agricultural – waste that was cut between September and February, inclusive, as long as a permit is received from the relevant local authority and the local fire service is informed.
The exemption officially lapsed on January 1, but following surprise and concern from farm organisations and rural politicians, it has been been extended by one year.
The regulation for this extension has now been signed by Minister Ryan, and will be published next week, at which point stakeholders will be notified.
It is understood that the exemption will allow farmers to burn waste – which was cut between September and February – throughout the year, including during the summer, as long as the proper permit is received, as was the arrangement in previous years.
The Department of Environment said that the extension was being made this year as “no progress has been made on the feasibility of alternative options to the burning of this waste, such as mulching and chipping”.
The Waste Management (Prohibition of Waste Disposal by Burning) Regulation 2009 makes it an offence to dispose of waste by uncontrolled burning.
As an exemption, Article 5 of the regulations provides for the permissible disposal of waste by burning under certain conditions, including, among others, where the material to be burned consists of uncontaminated wood, trees, tree trimmings, leaves, brush, or other similar waste generated by agricultural practices only, provided that such burning is done as a final measure.
Article 6 of the regulations provides a ‘sunset clause’ for this exemption, following which it would be necessary to make an application to a local authority for a Certificate of Registration under the Waste Management Facility Permit Regulations in relation to the activity in question.
This sunset provision has been extended through amending regulations on four previous occasions, the latest of which brought the exemption up to January 1 this year.
“As no progress has been made on the feasibility of alternative options to the burning of this waste, such as mulching and chipping, regulations allowing a further one year extension for 2022 have recently been signed by the minister [Eamon Ryan] and will be published in the coming days.
“It is anticipated that this will be the final extension to the exemption,” the department added.
It went on to say: “This department, through its Environment Protection and Air Quality units, will engage with colleagues in [the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine] as a matter of urgency to examine alternatives to this practice.
Welcoming the confirmation of an extension today by the Department of Environment (the department responsible for these regulations), independent TD Michael McNamara said: “While the previously announced ban would undoubtedly have been a huge inconvenience to farmers across the country, the environmental benefits of the move would also have been questionable.
“I had previously pointed out to the Taoiseach [Micheál Martin] that instead of burning, green waste would have to be mulched using large diesel engines. This news will be very much welcomed by farmers,” the Clare TD added.