Chemical Offences
CHEMICALS ACT
PART 6
Offences and Penalties
Section 29
Offences.
29.— (1) An exporter or importer who contravenes a provision of the Rotterdam Regulation that applies to him or her shall be guilty of an offence.
(2) A manufacturer who contravenes a provision of the Detergents Regulation that applies to him or her shall be guilty of an offence.
(3) Where—
(a) a distributor,
(b) a downstream user,
(c) an importer,
(d) a manufacturer,
(e) a person appointed in accordance with Article 8 of the REACH F35[Regulation,]
(f) a producer of an F35[article, or]
F36[(g) in relation to paragraph 11 in entry 63 of Annex XVII to the REACH Regulation, a person,]
contravenes a provision of the REACH Regulation that applies to him or her, that person shall be guilty of an offence.
F37[(3A) Where—
(a) a distributor,
(b) a downstream user,
(c) an importer,
(d) a manufacturer,
(e) a notifier,
(f) a producer of an article, or
(g) a supplier,
contravenes a provision of the CLP Regulation that applies to him or her, that person shall be guilty of an offence.]
(4) A person who contravenes a provision of regulations under this Act that is declared in the regulations to be a penal provision shall be guilty of an offence.
(5) A person who contravenes a requirement in a contravention notice or a prohibition notice shall be guilty of an offence.
(6) A person who forges or utters knowing it to be forged—
(a) a register, record, licence, authorisation, direction, or permit under the relevant chemicals statutory provisions or a document purporting to be an extract therefrom, or
(b) a contravention notice, a prohibition notice or an information notice,
(in this section referred to as a “forged document”) shall be guilty of an offence.
(7) A person who alters, with intent to defraud or deceive, or who utters knowing it to be so altered—
(a) a register, record, licence, authorisation, direction, or permit under the relevant chemicals statutory provisions or a document purporting to be an extract therefrom, or
(b) a contravention notice, a prohibition notice or an information notice,
(in this section referred to as an “altered document”) shall be guilty of an offence.
(8) A person who has, without lawful authority, a forged document or an altered document in his or her possession shall be guilty of an offence.
(9) Any person who obstructs or interferes with an inspector or a member of the Garda Síochána in the course of exercising a power conferred on him or her by this Act or a warrant under section 12 or impedes the exercise by the inspector or member, as the case may be, of such power, or fails or refuses to comply with a request or requirement of, or to answer a question asked by, an inspector or such a member pursuant to a power conferred by this Act, or in purported compliance with such request or requirement or in answer to such question gives information to the inspector or member that he or she knows to be false or misleading in any material respect, shall be guilty of an offence.
(10) Any person who obstructs or interferes with an officer of customs and excise in the course of exercising a power conferred on him or her by this Act shall be guilty of an offence.
(11) A person who falsely represents himself or herself to be an inspector shall be guilty of an offence.
(12) A person who, at any time during the period of 3 months immediately following the affixing of a notice in accordance with section 3(1)(d), removes, alters, damages or defaces the notice without lawful authority shall be guilty of an offence.
(13) A person who states to a national authority that another person has committed an offence under this section or has failed to comply with a provision of the relevant chemicals statutory provisions knowing the statement to be false shall be guilty of an offence.
(14) A person who, in purported compliance with a requirement in an information notice, furnishes information to a national authority that he or she knows to be false or misleading in a material respect shall be guilty of an offence.
(15) A person who contravenes section 28 shall be guilty of an offence.
(16) A person who—
(a) fails to comply with a direction under section 14, or
(b) contravenes an information notice under section 27,
shall be guilty of an offence.
Annotations
Amendments:
F35
Substituted (26.10.2023) by Chemicals Act 2008 (Lead in Gunshot in Or Around Wetlands) Regulations 2023 (S.I. No. 517 of 2023), reg. 4(a), (b).
F36
Inserted (26.10.2023) by Chemicals Act 2008 (Lead in Gunshot in Or Around Wetlands) Regulations 2023 (S.I. No. 517 of 2023), reg. 4(c).
F37
Inserted (10.12.2010) by Chemicals (Amendment) Act 2010 (32/2010), s. 9, S.I. No. 591 of 2010.
Editorial Notes:
E11
Chemicals (Asbestos Articles) Regulations 2011 (S.I. No. 248 of 2011), regs. 3(1) and 4(4), declared to be penal provisions for purposes of subs. (4) (31.05.2011) by Chemicals (Asbestos Articles) Regulations 2011 (S.I. No. 248 of 2011), reg. 12.
Section 30
Penalties.
30.— (1) A person guilty of an offence under section 29 (other than F38[subsection (3)(g) and subsection (16)]) shall be liable—
(a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding €5,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding F39[12 months] or both, or
(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding €3,000,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or both.
(2) A person guilty of an offence under section 29(16) shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding €5,000.
F40[(2A) A person guilty of an offence under section 29(3)(g) shall be liable –
(a) on summary conviction, to a class A fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or both, or
(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding €500,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or both.]
(3) Where a person is convicted of an offence under the relevant chemicals statutory provisions in proceedings brought by a national authority, the court shall, unless it is satisfied that there are special and substantial reasons for not so doing, order the person to pay to that national authority the costs and expenses measured by the court, incurred by the national authority in relation to the investigation, detection and prosecution of the offence, including costs and expenses incurred in the taking of samples, the carrying out of tests, examinations and analyses and in respect of the remuneration and other expenses of employees, consultants and advisers engaged by the national authority.
Annotations
Amendments:
F38
Substituted (26.10.2023) by Chemicals Act 2008 (Lead in Gunshot in Or Around Wetlands) Regulations 2023 (S.I. No. 517 of 2023), reg. 5(a).
F39
Substituted (10.12.2010) by Chemicals (Amendment) Act 2010 (32/2010), s. 10, S.I. No. 591 of 2010.
F40
Inserted (26.10.2023) by Chemicals Act 2008 (Lead in Gunshot in Or Around Wetlands) Regulations 2023 (S.I. No. 517 of 2023), reg. 5(b). A class A fine means a fine not greater than €5,000 as provided (4.01.2011) by Fines Act 2010 (8/2010), ss. 3, 4(1), S.I. No. 662 of 2010.
Editorial Notes:
E12
A fine of €5,000 translates into a class A fine, not greater than €5,000, as provided (4.01.2011) by Fines Act 2010 (8/2010), ss. 3, 4(2) and table ref. no. 1, S.I. No. 662 of 2010.
Section 31
Fixed payment notice.
31.— (1) Where an inspector has reasonable grounds for believing that a person has committed an offence under the relevant chemicals statutory provisions and is liable to summary prosecution in respect thereof, the inspector may give to the person a notice in writing (in this Act referred to as a “fixed payment notice”) in the prescribed form stating that—
(a) the person is alleged to have committed that offence,
(b) the person may during the period of 21 days beginning on the date of the notice make to the national authority concerned at the address specified in the notice a payment of such amount as may be prescribed, being an amount of not more than €2,000, accompanied by the notice,
(c) the person is not obliged to make the payment specified in the notice, and
(d) a prosecution of the person to whom the notice is given in respect of the alleged offence will not be instituted during the period of 21 days beginning on the date of the notice and, if the payment specified in the notice is made during that period, no prosecution in respect of the alleged offence will be instituted.
(2) Where a fixed payment notice is given under subsection (1)—
(a) the person to whom it applies may, during the period of 21 days beginning on the date of the notice, make to the national authority concerned at the address specified in the notice the payment specified in the notice accompanied by the notice,
(b) the national authority may, upon receipt of the payment, issue a receipt for it and any payment so received shall not be recoverable by the person who made it, and
(c) a prosecution in respect of the alleged offence shall not be instituted in the period specified in the notice, and if the payment so specified is made during that period, no prosecution in respect of the alleged offence shall be instituted.
(3) In summary proceedings for an offence under the relevant chemicals statutory provisions it shall be a defence for the defendant to prove that he or she has made a payment, in accordance with this section, pursuant to a fixed payment notice issued in respect of that offence.
(4) Regulations prescribing an amount under subsection (1)(b) may prescribe different amounts in relation to different offences.
(5) Moneys received pursuant to the giving of a fixed payment notice shall be disposed of in a manner determined—
(a) by the Authority, with the prior consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance,
(b) by a national authority (other than the Authority or a Minister of the Government), with the prior consent of the relevant Minister and the Minister for Finance, or
(c) by a national authority who is a Minister of the Government, with the prior consent of the Minister for Finance.
Annotations
Modifications (not altering text):
C6
Functions under subs. (5) transferred and references to “Department of Finance” and “Minister for Finance” construed (29.07.2011) by Finance (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order 2011 (S.I. No. 418 of 2011), arts. 2, 3, 5 and sch. 1 part 2, in effect as per art. 1(2).
2. (1) The administration and business in connection with the performance of any functions transferred by this Order are transferred to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.
(2) References to the Department of Finance contained in any Act or instrument made thereunder and relating to the administration and business transferred by paragraph (1) shall, on and after the commencement of this Order, be construed as references to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.
3. The functions conferred on the Minister for Finance by or under the provisions of —
(a) the enactments specified in Schedule 1, and
(b) the statutory instruments specified in Schedule 2,
are transferred to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.
…
5. References to the Minister for Finance contained in any Act or instrument under an Act and relating to any functions transferred by this Order shall, from the commencement of this Order, be construed as references to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.
…
Schedule 1
Enactments
…
Part 2
1922 to 2011 Enactments
Number and Year
Short Title
Provision
…
No. 13 of 2008
…
…
Chemicals Act 2008
…
…
Sections 5(5), 10, 18(3)and 31(5)
…
Editorial Notes:
E13
A fine of €2,000 translates into a class C fine, not greater than €2,500, as provided (4.01.2011) by Fines Act 2010 (8/2010), ss. 3, 6(2) and table ref. no. 1, S.I. No. 662 of 2010.
Section 32
Offences by bodies corporate.
32.— Where an offence under this Act has been committed by a body corporate and is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of, a person being a director, manager, secretary or other officer of the body corporate, or a person who was purporting to act in any such capacity, that person as well as the body corporate shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished as if he or she were guilty of the first-mentioned offence.
Section 33
Prosecution of offences.
33.— (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), summary proceedings in relation to an offence under the relevant chemicals statutory provisions may be brought and prosecuted by a national authority.
(2) Notwithstanding section 10(4) of the Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851 and subject to subsection (3), summary proceedings for an offence under section 29(16) may be instituted at any time within 12 months from the date on which the offence was committed or alleged to have been committed.
(3) Where a special report is submitted under section 18(1) to a national authority and it appears from the report that one or more of the relevant chemicals statutory provisions was contravened during any period to which the report relates, summary proceedings for an offence consisting of the contravention concerned may be instituted at any time within 6 months of the submission of the report under section 18(1) or 12 months after the date of the contravention, whichever occurs later.
PART 7
Miscellaneous
Section 34
Appeal to Circuit Court from certain orders of District Court.
34.— For the avoidance of doubt, an order of the District Court confirming, varying or cancelling a notice under section 15(6), 16(6) or 27(3) is a decision of a judge of the District Court for the purposes of section 84 of the Courts of Justice Act 1924.
Section 35
Notice or direction to be in writing.
35.— Any notice or direction under this Act shall be in writing.
Section 36
Laying of regulations and orders before Houses of Oireachtas.
36.— Every regulation or order (other than an order under section 1(2)) under this Act shall be laid by the Minister before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the regulation or order is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House sits after the regulation or order is laid before it, the regulation or order shall be annulled accordingly but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under the regulation or order.
Section 37
Amendment of Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.
37.— The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 is amended—
(a) in section 34(1), by inserting after paragraph (d) the following:
“(dd) to perform the functions conferred on the Authority by the Chemicals Act 2008,”,
and
(b) in Schedule 6, paragraph 5, by substituting “paragraph 4” for “paragraph 3”.