Regulations providing an extension to the exemption which allows for the onsite burning of agricultural green waste have been signed off on today, Friday (January 27).
The extension, which was previously rolled over five times, concluded on January 1 of this year, however, it will now resume and continue until March 1, 2023.
It will then close, before re-opening for another two month period between September 1, and November 30, to allow farmers to deal with waste accumulated in the interim.
The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC) drafted the ‘Waste Management, prohibition of waste disposal by burning Regulations, which provide for this extension, in consultation with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM).
In its announcement, the DECC emphasised that the exemption applies to cut green agricultural waste only. It does not apply to any other waste arising on farms, for example plastics or tyres.
An exemption under the legislation, which has allowed farmers to dispose of waste generated by agricultural practices by burning as a last resort following strict application of the waste hierarchy, has been extended on several occasions.
‘Final extension to regulations’
The DECC’s statement noted: “It was never intended that this exemption would extend in perpetuity and this will be the final time such an extension will be granted”.
The decision to extend this exemption arose from the recommendations made in a recent feasibility study, which was commissioned by DAFM, to examine alternative measures to the burning of agricultural green waste in Ireland.
The study was prepared by the Irish Bioenergy Association (IrBEA), and noted that there are a number of “feasible alternatives” available to “sustainably manage” this waste material.
It states that “the primary concern from the burning of biomass in open field burn piles, compared to within combustion appliances for heat, is in the pollutants that are given off through combustion”.
It states that these pollutants can then have “negative impacts on health, air quality and the environment, including the production of greenhouse gases (GHGs)”.
Officials from both departments will continue work on identifying and examining measures to ensure that the agricultural sector is supported in transitioning “to alternative, sustainable management practices”.