306 Mr. Garland asked the Minister for the Environment whether there are any toxic dumps being monitored for potential health risks.

309 Mr. Garland asked the Minister for the Environment if he will list the sites that are used for toxic dumping detailing any identified toxic materials which have been dumped in them; and if he will outline the threat, if any, which exists to (1) ground water and (2) air quality.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 306 and 309 together. Since hazardous waste management planning and control are statutorily devolved to the major local authorities, the Department of the Environment does not have the detailed information sought in Question No. 309. A considerable amount of information relating to local authority and private waste disposal operations is however contained in the National Data Base on Waste (1986), a copy of which is in the Oireachtas Library. Work on updating this data base is in hands. An underlying principle of hazardous waste management, as set out in the European Communities (Toxic and Dangerous Waste) Regulations, 1982 and the associated Departmental guidelines is that such wastes must be disposed of without endangering human health or harming the environment. A range of controls, including environmental monitoring, operate in support of this objective.

Comprehensive new legislation on waste is at an advanced stage of preparation in the Department, following a consultative seminar held in July, 1992 to obtain views from a wide range of interested organisations and persons.