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S.I. No. 244 of 2006
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Kyoto Protocol Flexible Mechanisms
Regulations 2006
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The Minister for the Environment, Heritage
and Local Government, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections
6 and 53 of the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992 (No. 7 of 1992),
and for the purpose of designating the Environmental Protection Agency as
the Irish Focal Point pursuant to Article 6, the national registry
administrator pursuant to Article 7 and as the Irish National Authority
pursuant to Article 12 of the Kyoto Protocol and the decisions adopted
pursuant to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and
the Kyoto Protocol, hereby makes the following Regulations:-
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Citation
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1. These Regulations may be
cited as the Kyoto Protocol Flexible Mechanisms Regulations 2006.
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Commencement
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2. These Regulations shall come
into operation on 15th May 2006.
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Interpretation
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3. (1) In these Regulations,
unless the context otherwise requires-
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“the Act” means the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992 ;
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“the Agency” means the Environmental Protection Agency established
under section 19 of the Act;
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“Annex I Party” means a Party listed in Annex I to the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change that has ratified the Kyoto
Protocol as specified in Article 1(7) of the Protocol;
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“approval” means, in relation to a proposed project activity, the
approval or authorisation, as appropriate, required under Article 6 or
Article 12 of the Protocol;
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“assigned amount unit” is a unit issued pursuant to Article 3 of the
Kyoto Protocol and the decisions adopted pursuant to the Convention and the
Protocol;
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“certified emission reduction unit” means a unit issued pursuant to
Article 12 of the Kyoto Protocol and the decisions adopted pursuant to the
Convention or the Protocol;
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“the Convention” means the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change
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“the Directive” means Directive 2003/87/EC1 of
the European Parliament and of the Council of 13th October 2003
establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within
the Community and amending Council Directive 96/61/EC2 ,
as amended by Directive 2004/101/EC3
of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 27th October 2004 in respect of the Kyoto Protocol's
project mechanisms;
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“emission reduction unit” means a unit issued pursuant to Article 6
of the Protocol and the decisions adopted pursuant to the Convention or the
Protocol;
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“host country” means a country which is a Party to the Kyoto
Protocol and in which a project activity will take place;
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“the Minister” means the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and
Local Government;
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“person” means any natural or legal person;
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“project activity” means a project activity within the meaning of
Article 6 or Article 12 of the Protocol and the decisions adopted pursuant
to the Convention or the Protocol;
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“the Protocol” means the 1997 Kyoto Protocol to the 1992 United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change;
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“the public” means one or more persons and associations,
organisations or groups of persons; and
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“removal unit” is a unit issued pursuant to Article 3 of the Kyoto
Protocol and the decisions adopted pursuant to the Convention and the
Protocol.
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(2) In these Regulations:-
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(a) a reference to an article or
sub-article which is not otherwise identified is a reference to an article
or sub-article of these Regulations;
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(b) a letter, word, phrase or symbol
which has been assigned a meaning by the Directive, or is used in the Directive,
has that meaning where the context requires except where otherwise
indicated.
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(3) In these Regulations, a reference to an
enactment shall be construed as a reference to that enactment as amended by
a subsequent enactment, including these Regulations.
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Objective
and Scope
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4. These regulations provide
for:-
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(a) the designation of the Agency as
Focal Point and National Authority for the purposes of Articles 6 and 12,
respectively, of the Protocol and the decisions adopted pursuant to the
Convention and the Protocol;
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(b) the establishment of a registry,
and designation of the Agency as national registry administrator, for the
purposes of Article 7 of the Protocol and the decisions adopted pursuant to
the Convention and the Protocol.
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Exclusion
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5. These Regulations shall not
apply to a proposed project activity to be carried out in Ireland.
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Designation
of Focal Point and National Authority and establishment of Registry
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6. (1) Subject to Article 5,
the Agency is designated:-
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(a) the Focal Point for the purposes of Article 6 of the
Protocol and the decisions adopted pursuant to the Convention and the
Protocol;
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(b) the National Authority for the purposes of Article 12
of the Protocol and the decisions adopted pursuant to the Convention and the
Protocol.
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(2) (a) The Agency shall establish
and maintain a national registry to ensure the accurate accounting of the
issuance, holding, transfer, acquisition, cancellation and retirement of
emission reduction units, certified emissions reduction units, assigned amount
units and removal units and the carry-over of emissions reduction units,
certified emission reduction units and assigned amount units;
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(b) the Agency is designated national registry
administrator for the purposes of Article 7 of the Protocol and the
decisions adopted pursuant to the Convention and the Protocol.
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Approval
of project activities
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7. (1) (a) Any person may apply to the Agency
for approval in respect of a proposed project activity;
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(b) Certified emission reduction units or emission
reduction units arising from an application under sub-article (2) shall, in
the first instance, be registered in the registry provided for in article
6(2)(a).
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(2) (a) An application for approval
in respect of a proposed project activity shall be made in such form and
shall contain such information as the Agency may require.
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(b) As a minimum, an application should contain:-
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(i) a
description of the proposed project activity, including a project design
document;
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(ii) a declaration signed by the
applicant that participation by all parties to the project is voluntary and
that the information supplied as part of the application is complete and
accurate;
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(iii) a letter of approval from the designated
Focal Point or National Authority, as appropriate, for the host country.
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(3) An application under sub-article
(2) shall be accompanied by the fee payable in accordance with Article 10.
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(4) As soon as practicable after
receipt of an application in accordance with sub-articles (2) and (3), the
Agency shall respond in writing to the applicant indicating either that:
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(a) approval is granted, with or without conditions, or
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(b) approval is refused and the reason for the refusal.
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(5) For the purposes of determining an
application under sub-article (2), the Agency shall satisfy itself that:-
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(a) in accordance with Article 11b(1) of the Directive,
in respect of a project activity to be undertaken in a country which has
signed a Treaty of Accession with the European Union, the baseline used for
determining the emissions reductions from the project activity complies with
all legislation of the European Union, subject only to any temporary
derogations set out in that Treaty;
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(b) participation in the proposed project activity is
consistent with Ireland's obligations under Article 11b(5) of the Directive
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(c) in accordance with Article 11b(6) of the Directive,
relevant international criteria and guidelines will be respected during the
development of hydroelectric power production project activities with a
generating capacity exceeding 20MW.
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(6) An application under sub-article (2) may be
withdrawn at any time before it is determined.
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(7) The Agency shall not issue an approval in
respect of a proposed project activity where certified emissions reduction
units or emission reduction units are generated from a nuclear facility.
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Power of
the Agency to request further information
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8. (1) The Agency may, in the case of
an application under Article 7(2), request the applicant to provide further
information on the proposed project activity.
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(2) A request for further information
under sub-article (1) shall be made in writing, and shall state the reason
for the request and the time within which the further information is to be
provided.
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Access to
information
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9. The Agency shall make
available to the public, information on project activities that it has
approved, in accordance with the provisions of the European Communities Act
1972 (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations 1998 ( S.I. No.
125 of 1998 ).
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Fees
for letters of approval
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10. (1) Each application for approval under
Article 7 shall be accompanied by a fee of €1 for every 100 certified
emission reduction units or emissions reduction units anticipated to accrue
from the proposed project activity, subject to a minimum fee of €500 and a
maximum fee of €5,000 per application.
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(2) An application in respect of which the full
fee has not been paid may, after giving notice in writing to the applicant
and allowing a reasonable period for a response, be deemed invalid by the
Agency and returned to the applicant together with any part of the fee paid.
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(3) Where an application is withdrawn in
accordance with article 7(6), the Agency may, at its discretion, refund all
or part of the application fee.
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(4) The Agency may require any information
included in an application, or further information submitted pursuant to a
request from the Agency, to be independently verified to enable it to
properly assess the application. A requirement under this provision may
include a requirement for verification to be provided by a person designated
by the Agency and for the applicant to defray or contribute towards the cost
of any such verification.
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(5) Notwithstanding any other provision of these
Regulations, the Agency shall have an absolute discretion to refund or waive
all or any part of a the fee payable in respect of a particular application
where it is satisfied that the payment in full of the fee would not be just
and reasonable in the particular circumstances of the application or the
proposed project activity.
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Given under the Official Seal of the
Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government this 9th
day of May 2006.
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Dick Roche,
T.D., Minister
for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.
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EXPLANATORY NOTE
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(This note is not part of the Regulations
and does not purport to be a legal interpretation)
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These Regulations designate the Environmental
Protection Agency as Focal Point for the purposes of Article 6 of the Kyoto
Protocol and National Authority for the purposes of Article 12 of the Kyoto
Protocol. In this capacity, any person in Ireland may apply to the Agency
for approval in respect of a project activity under the Joint Implementation
or Clean Development Mechanisms respectively provided for under Article 6
and 12 of the Kyoto Protocol.
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The Regulations stipulate that, as a minimum,
applications should contain a project design document for the proposed
project activity, a declaration by the applicant that information submitted
is complete and accurate, and a letter of a approval from the Focal Point or
National Authority for the host country. The Regulations allow the Agency to
require additional information to be submitted with applications.
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The Regulations do not apply to a proposed
project activity to be carried out in Ireland. The Regulations prohibit the
Agency from approving a proposed project activity where certified emission
reduction units or emission reduction units will be generated from a nuclear
facility.
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Each application shall be accompanied by a
fee, which will be proportionate to the emissions reductions expected to be
achieved by the project, subject to a minimum fee of €500 and a maximum fee
of €5,000. This fee shall be payable to the Agency and is intended to defray
the costs of the Agency's activities as Focal Point and National Authority.
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The Regulations also provide for the
establishment of a registry for the purposes of Article 7(4) of the Protocol
and the decisions adopted pursuant to the Convention and the Protocol, in
particular Decision 19/CP.7 of the Conference of the Parties to the
Convention which requires each Party included in Annex I to the Convention
to establish and maintain a registry to ensure accurate accounting of
emission reduction units (ERUs), certified
emission reduction units (CERs), assigned amount
units (AAUs) and removal units (RMUs).
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1 OJ L 275/32 of
25.10.2003
2 OJ L 257/26 of
10.10.1996
3 OJ L 338/18 of
13.11.2004
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