4 May 2006

Environment

Neighbourhood Noise

Ciarán Cuffe asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government his views on whether the arrangements for dealing with neighbourhood noise are sufficient.

Minister for Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche):

Section 107 of the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992 provides local authorities with powers to require measures to be taken to prevent or limit noise. These powers are generally exercised in preventing and limiting noise from commercial and industrial premises within their functional areas.

Under the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992 (Noise) Regulations 1994, a local authority or any person may seek an order in the District Court to have noise giving reasonable cause for annoyance abated. The procedures involved have been simplified to allow action to be taken without legal representation. A public information leaflet outlining the legal avenues available to persons experiencing noise nuisance is available from my Department and on the Department’s website, www.environ.ie.

Provisions in the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 relating to anti-social behaviour, in the context of tenant and landlord obligations, may also be relevant, depending on the circumstances.

Finally, noise nuisance and other problems caused by local authority tenants are also covered under legislation. The tenancy agreement, which is the legal basis of the relationship between the local authority and its tenants, will generally contain provisions in relation to the type of behaviour that is acceptable, and that which is not. The local authority is empowered under Section 62 of the Housing Act 1966, to initiate proceedings to secure an eviction where a tenant has breached the conditions of the tenancy agreement.

I am satisfied that adequate statutory provisions are in place to address neighbourhood noise nuisance. The Environmental Noise Regulations 2006 transpose EU Directive 2002/49/EC, relating to the assessment and management of environmental noise. Environmental noise is defined in the EU Directive as unwanted or harmful outdoor sound created by human activities, including noise emitted by means of transport, road traffic, rail traffic, air traffic, and from sites of industrial activity. The Directive excludes, inter alia, noise from domestic activities and noise created by neighbours.