Irish Regions Office Website

February 05, 2010

New waste enforcement agency on cards?

Enforcing compliance of national laws with EU waste legislation merits a new EU body according to recommendations contained in a European Commission feasibility study published on 1 February.

The quality of the implementation efforts attached to the various waste regulations and directives in many Member States has long been a concern in Brussels with the backlog of time-consuming infringement proceedings mounting year on year. Almost one in five environmental infringement cases is now waste-related yet the Commission is not in a position to provide the practical resources to address this situation throguh early-stage interventions.

The study depicts this situation as being mirrored within many national jurisdictions where a lack of technical capacity to prepare waste management plans, poor coordination among organisations, and a lack of resources for enforcement activities are seen to be widely in evidence - creating an environment where implementing waste laws is a distinctly low priority at national level while ranking among the EU's top concerns.

The proposed agency is being envisaged as carrying out reviews of Member States' enforcement systems, supplying guidance on the interpretation of EU waste requirements, and providing training for national officials. Where serious cases of non-compliance arose, direct inspections and controls of facilities would take place. An in-depth cost-benefit analysis on the proposal is to be carried out over the coming year.

More information

Posted by iroronan at February 5, 2010 10:28 AM