EIA Rural Development
EIA Foreshore
EIA of development on the foreshore is regulated under the Foreshore Acts. EIA requirements have been integrated into consent. A lease or licence must be obtained from the Minister for the Communications and Natural Resources under the Act for development on State foreshore.
Development consisting of the erection of any building, pier, wall or other permanent structure on non-State foreshore must be carried out in accordance with maps, plans and specifications approved by the Minister.
Ministerial consent must be obtained for the deposit of material on the foreshore. Local authority development on the foreshore must be approved by An Bord Pleanála.
EIS Aquaculture
An aquaculture licence application may require an environmental impact statement and assessment if it is determined that it may have a significant effect on the environment. The legislation is the European Union (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Aquaculture) Regulations.
Automatic environmental impact assessment is required for aquaculture within certain categories (based on the extent), subject to exceptions.
EIA Agriculture
The European Communities (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Agriculture) Regulations apply to certain on-farm activities above certain thresholds:
- Restructuring of rural land holdings
- commencing to use uncultivated land or semi-natural areas for intensive agriculture and
- land drainage works on lands used for agriculture (excluding drainage or reclamation of wetlands).
The application for consent must be accompanied by an environmental impact statement and where required, a Natura impact statement. A description of the activity outline of alternatives and impact on the environment must be described. Measures to avoid reduce and offset the adverse effect should be set out.
The Department of Agriculture will consider the application having consulted with other bodies and consider the environmental impact statement. It may serve a prohibition notice if works are done in breach of the obligations. Breach of the obligation is an offence.
EIA Screening
Thresholds and exemptions apply for prior screening. Screening is required where the relevant thresholds are exceeded. The thresholds are set out in the legislation and guidance. If the works exceed the threshold from mandatory environmental impact assessment following screening environmental impact assessment as required than the work may not proceed without Department of agriculture Food and the Marine consent.
Screening is required in respect of land drainage works and land use for agriculture above 15 ha. Where the activity does not exceed the size thresholds but requires consent or is a notifiable action in relation to a European site (SAC or SPA or NHA ) screening is also required.
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine examines the proposed activities for environmental impact to determine if the activities can proceed without the need for an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). Where the activities are likely to have a significant effect on the environment a full EIA will be required.
Screening Application
A person shall not carry out or allow any of listed activities other than in accordance with a screening decision or a consent. A person who wishes to undertake the activities must submit an application for a screening decision where certain thresholds are exceeded, or it may have a significant impact on the environment or European site a natural heritage area or a monument
A person shall submit an application for consent if the activity exceeds the threshold or is likely to have impact as above. The application shall include an environmental impact statement or are not sure impact statement. Notice is given to relevant consultation bodies.
Notice of the application is published and there is possibility for statements and representations to be made. The Minister makes the consent decision having regard to the information in the application environmental guidelines by Minister acts of the European Union policies legal requirements and other matters considered relevant.
When the Minister having considered the information is of the opinion that the activity is not likely to have significant impacts or effects this will inform the applicant and the activity may proceed within such period as specified. Where the Minister considers it is likely to have a significant effect on the environment consent is required.
EIA Flood Relief
Under the European Union (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Flood Risk) Regulations the Minister shall, as part of his consideration of a proposed flood risk management scheme, ensure that before approval is given a scheme likely to have significant effects on the environment by virtue, inter alia of its nature, size or location is made subject to an environmental impact assessment.
An environmental impact assessment shall be carried out by the Minister in respect of an application for approval for a flood risk management scheme which would involve the execution of flood risk management works of a class or classes specified in the Regulations.
Automatic EIA Examples Water and Dams
- Works for the transfer of water resources between river basins, where this transfer aims at preventing possible shortages of water and where the amount of water transferred exceeds 100 million cubic metres per year.
- In all other cases, works for the transfer of water resources between river basins, where the multi-annual average flow of the basin of abstraction exceeds 2,000 million cubic metres per year and where the amount of water transferred exceeds 5 per cent of this flow. In the cases above, transfers of piped drinking water are excluded.
- Dams and other installations designed for the holding back or permanent storage of water, where a new or additional amount of water held back or stored exceeds 10 million cubic metres.
Automatic EIA Examples Agriculture, Silviculture and Aquaculture
- Development consisting of the carrying out of drainage and/or reclamation of wetlands where more than 2 hectares of wetlands would be affected.
- Replacement of broadleaf high forest by conifer species, where the area involved would be greater than 10 hectares.
- Deforestation for the purpose of conversion to another type of land use, where the area to be deforested would be greater than 10 hectares of natural woodlands or 70 hectares of conifer forest.
- Seawater fish breeding installations with an output which would exceed 100 tonnes per annum; all fish breeding installations consisting of cage rearing in lakes; all fish breeding installations upstream of drinking water intakes; other freshwater fish breeding installations which would exceed 1 million smolts and with less than 1 cubic metre
- per second per 1 million smolts low flow diluting water.
- Reclamation of land from the sea, where the area of reclaimed land would be greater than 10 hectares.
Automatic EIA Examples Extractive Industry
- Peat extraction which would involve a new or extended area of 30 hectares or more.
- Extraction of stone, gravel, sand or clay, where the area of extraction would be greater than 5 hectares.
- All extraction of minerals within the meaning of the Minerals Development Acts, 1940 to 1999.
- Extraction of stone, gravel, sand or clay by marine dredging (other than maintenance dredging), where the area involved would be greater than 5 hectares or, in the case of fluvial dredging (other than maintenance dredging), where the length of river involved would be greater than 500 metres.
Automatic EIA Examples Drilling
With the exception of drilling to investigate the stability of the soil, deep drilling consisting of
- geothermal drilling,
- drilling for the storage of nuclear waste material,
- drilling for water supplies, where the expected supply would exceed 2 million cubic metres per annum, or
- certain other deep drilling, except where, in considering whether or not an environmental impact assessment should be carried