Businesses who use solvents in their work such as dry cleaning, printing, surface coating and pharmaceutical must apply to the local authority for an organic solvents vapour emissions certificate once the solvent usage threshold is exceeded.
Organic Solvent Regulations (Dry Cleaners)
Relevant Legislation: S.I. No. 565/2012 – European Union (Installations and Activities Using Organic Solvents) Regulations 2012.
These Regulations stipulate that businesses using organic solvents or solvent containing materials as part of their operation must obtain a Certificate of Compliance from their Local Authority.
The Regulations oblige operators using organic solvents to hold a current certificate of compliance. To obtain this certificate, operators must first arrange for an approved assessor, appointed by the EPA, to review their operations and obtain a compliant assessment report. The resulting compliant assessment report along with a completed registration application form and registration fee must be submitted to and approved by Carlow County Council.
How much is the Application Fee?
The application fee payable by operators to Carlow County Council is €70 for new applications and €50 for renewals.
Carlow County Council must then decide whether or not to issue a certificate of compliance, what conditions, if any, to apply and inform the operator of the decisions. Certificates of approval must be renewed by an operator every 3 years.
These Regulations are enforced by Carlow County Council. It is an offence for any dry-cleaning installation to operate without a valid Certificate of Compliance, and breaches of the Regulations may incur fines of up to €5,000 on summary conviction in the District Court.
If you have any queries in relation to the Organic Solvents Regulations, please contact the environment section by phone 059 9136231 or by email environment@carlowcoco.ie