A ‘closed landfill’, also commonly referred to as a historic landfill, is defined in the said Regulations as a landfill site operated by a local authority for the recovery or disposal of waste without a waste licence on any date between 15th July 1977 and 27th March 1997.
The Environmental Protection Agency is obliged to process applications from local authorities in relation to ‘closed landfills’ in accordance with the Waste Management (Certification of Historic Unlicensed Waste Disposal and Recovery Activity) Regulations, 2008.
The purpose of certificates of authorisation is to specify control and remediation measures required at a closed landfill to ensure that waste disposed or recovered in the closed landfill is not causing, or is not likely to cause, environmental pollution. A certificate of authorisation shall comply with the above Regulations.
Before making an application for a certificate of authorisation, a local authority has to identify and register the closed landfill in accordance with the Regulations. The local authority shall then carry out a risk assessment in respect of the closed landfill in accordance with the EPA Code of Practice – Environmental Risk Assessment for Unregulated Waste Disposal Sites and the Regulations (Regulation 6). Once the risk assessment has been completed, the local authority apply to the EPA for a certificate of authorisation (Regulation 7).
As of Jan 2022, there are 69 registered Historic Landfills
You can search the dataset of Historic Landfills here:
Or click on a specific Landfill Facility here:
| Reg No. | Applicant | Location of Facility | Documents? |
|---|---|---|---|
| H0125-01 | Donegal County Council | Dunkineely | Yes |
| H0141-01 | Donegal County Council | Carrick | Yes |
| H0167-01 | Fingal County Council | Barnageeragh | Yes |
| H0171-01 | Galway City Council | Southpark | Yes |
| H0175-01 | Galway County Council | Shore Road | Yes |
| H0176-01 | Galway County Council | Clifden – Tullyvogheen | Yes |
| H0181-01 | Galway County Council | Gort | Yes |
| H0188-01 | Galway County Council | New Inn | Yes |
| H0192-01 | Galway County Council | Tuam | Yes |
| H0194-01 | Kerry County Council | Ahasara | Yes |
| H0195-01 | Kerry County Council | Ardfert | Yes |
| H0198-01 | Kerry County Council | Castleisland | Yes |
| H0203-01 | Kerry County Council | Dingle | Yes |
| H0204-01 | Kerry County Council | Lenamore | Yes |
| H0205-01 | Kerry County Council | Listowel | Yes |
| H0208-01 | Kildare County Council | Greenhills | Yes |
| H0209-01 | Kildare County Council | Prusselstown | Yes |
| H0002-01 | Wexford County Council | Carcur Landfill | Yes |
| H0003-01 | Waterford City & County Council | Portlaw (Coolfin) Landfill | Yes |
| H0005-01 | Limerick City Council | St Marys park Limerick | Yes |
| H0007-01 | Cork County Council | Pike Landfill | Yes |
| H0008-01 | Cork County Council | Velvetstown Landfill | Yes |
| H0009-01 | Waterford County Council | Townspark East, Lismore, Co. Waterford | Yes |
| H0030-01 | Clare County Council | Kilrush | Yes |
| H0035-01 | Clare County Council | Whitegate | Yes |
| H0077-01 | Cork County Council | Clountreem Landfill | Yes |
| H0081-01 | Cork County Council | Clonakilty | Yes |
| H0082-01 | Cork County Council | Cloyne | Yes |
| H0084-01 | Cork County Council | Dunmanway | Yes |
| H0223-01 | Kildare County Council | Digby Bridge | Yes |
| H0228-01 | Kildare County Council | Pollardstown Refuse depot, Loughbrown, The Curragh | Yes |
| H0231-01 | Kilkenny County Council | Thorpes | Yes |
| H0237-01 | Kilkenny County Council | Oldcourt | Yes |
| H0246-01 | Laois County County | Wynne Park Landfill | Yes |
| H0253-01 | Laois County Council | Trumera | Yes |
| H0259-01 | Laois County Council | Oughaval | Yes |
| H0296-01 | Longford County Council | Ballymulvey | Yes |
| H0302-01 | Longford County Council | Cartron Big | Yes |
| H0307-01 | Louth County Council | Omeath Town Dump | Yes |
| H0353-01 | Meath County Council | Jenkinstown Dump | Yes |
| H0357-01 | Meath County Council | Oldcastle Town Dump | Yes |
| H0363-01 | Monaghan County Council | Scotch Corner | Yes |
| H0424-01 | South Dublin Co Co | Waterstown | Yes |
| H0432-01 | South Tipperary County Council | Kilsheelan, Clonmel | Yes |
| H0456-01 | Westmeath County Council | Moate | Yes |
| H0364-01 | Monaghan County Council | Killycard | Yes |
| H0366-01 | Monaghan County Council | Killycronaghan | Yes |
| H0394-01 | Roscommon County Council | Castlerea | Yes |
| H0319-01 | Mayo County Council | Claremorris | Yes |
| H0306-01 | Louth County Council | Carlingford | Yes |
| H0277-01 | Limerick City & County Council | Knocknacarriga | Yes |
| H0291-01 | Limerick City & County Council | Churchtown Landfill | Yes |
| H0474-02 | Wicklow County Council | Fassaroe 3C | Yes |
| H0475-01 | Wicklow County Council | Fassaroe 2 | Yes |
| H0476-01 | Wicklow County Council | Fassaroe 3B | Yes |
| H0001-01 | Cork County Council | Newmarket Landfill | Yes |
| H0477-02 | Wicklow County Council | Fassaroe 3A | Yes |
| H0233-01 | Kilkenny County Council | Shermans | Yes |
| H0235-01 | Kilkenny County Council | Gowran | Yes |
| H0089-01 | Cork County Council | Kealanine Landfill | Yes |
| H0016-01 | Cavan County Council | Kingscourt Dumping Ground | Yes |
| H0020-01 | Cavan County Council | Cootehill | Yes |
| H0022-01 | Cavan County Council | Mullagh | Yes |
| H0006-01 | Sligo County Council | Former Finisklin Landfill | Yes |
| H0004-01 | South Tipperary County Council | Tipperary Landfill, Carrownreddy, Tipperary Town, County Tipperary | Yes |
| H0210-01 | Kildare County Council | Carigeen, Clane | Yes |
| H0477-01 | Wicklow County Council | Fassaroe 3A, Bray, County Wicklow | Yes |
| H0402-01 | South Dublin County Council | Bohernabreena | Yes |
| H0474-01 | Wicklow Co Council | Fassaroe 3C | Yes |
Safety concerns mean old landfill sites will continue to cost taxpayers money
“As of July 2020, the total number of identified landfill sites was 611. By the end of 2019, only three privately operated landfills were still in operation, the report said. They included 117 sites licensed and regulated by the EPA since March 1997, and which it continues to monitor — 64 sites operated by local authorities and 53 operated privately. Some 494 unregulated sites are registered by local authorities on a web-based register established by the EPA.”
The report said that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) monitors environmental risk factors on an ongoing basis on the 117 landfill sites it has licensed and regulated since March 1997.
The EPA does not monitor environmental risk factors at the remaining 494 landfills that have been identified by the local authorities and are registered on an EPA-hosted database.
More than half of the 280 sites operated by local authorities and subsequently closed between June 1977 and March 1997 have been assessed as of either moderate or high risk, the report found.
Remediation plans have been submitted to the EPA in only 29 of the 280 sites.
“Neither the EPA, nor the department, nor the regional waste management planning offices were able to provide the examination team with complete information on the risk assessment status of the remaining 214 sites on the register as at December 31, 2019, which included pre-1977 local authority sites, private sites and illegal sites,” the report stated.
https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-40057541.html
Note: generally each historic landfill has an environmental screening report. Where a report is available, it’s generally an AA Screening Report, and can be difficult to locate on the EPA website. Click on the relevant Landfill Reg No (eg H0006-01), then click on View Applicant Documents. It is usually the largest file in the list
Note: Appropriate Assessment Screening is required under the Habitats Directive for any project or plan that may give rise to significant effects on a European (Natura 2000) site. The reports do cover water quality. They also cover potential cumulative effects, eg Ardfelt Quarry is less than 2km from Ardfelt Historic Landfill, and hydrologically linked
Examples of Appropriate Assessment Screening Reports prepared on behalf of local authorities on historic landfill sites
Dunkineely Landfill, Donegal
Carrick Landfill, Donegal
Barnageeragh Landfill, Dublin
Southpark Landfill, Galway