• Licences

    1. Licences Issued by South Tipperary County Council

    Any activity, either commercial, industrial, agricultural or domestic discharging wastewater directly to a river, stream or drain requires a licence, as per Section 4 of the Water Pollution Acts 1977 – 2006.  In addition any activity discharging wastewater to ground via percolation area (except those less than 5m3 per day, i.e. single houses) also requires a licence to discharge.  The following are details of all of the Section 4 licences in South Tipperary. 

    • Register of licences Section 4 31.03.09.xls
    • Guidance Notes for Applicants:
    • Water\Licencing\Application forms & Guidance Notes\Discharges to Waters - Guidance Note Rev2.doc
    • Application Form for Section 4 licences
    • Administration\Templates\Forms database\Discharge to Waters Application form FRM 0056 02.pdf

    Commercial and industrial activities discharging “trade effluent” to the public sewer require a licence as per Section 16 of the Water Pollution Acts, 1977 – 2006.  The following are details of all of the Section 16 licences in South Tipperary.

    • Register of licences Section 16 31.03.09.xls
    • Guidance Notes for Applicants:
    • Administration\Templates\Forms database\Guidance notes Attachments\Discharge to Sewers Guidance Notes Appendix FRM0057.pdf
    • Application Form for Section 16 licence.
    • Administration\Templates\Forms database\Discharge to Sewer Application form FRM 0057 01.doc

    Before issuing a licence South Tipperary County Council must be satisfied that the discharge will not cause water pollution, or in the case of discharges to sewers, South Tipperary County Council must be satisfied that the discharge will not damage or block the sewer.  Once granted, the licensee must demonstrate (by taking samples of the discharge) that the wastewater being discharged is not causing water pollution or any other damage.


    2. Licences Issued by the Environmental Protection Agency

    Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control Licences
    The EPA has been licensing certain large-scale industrial and agriculture activities since 1994.  The EPA issue Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) licences.  An IPPC licence is a single integrated licence which covers all emissions from the facility and aims to prevent or reduce emissions to air, water and land, reduce waste and use energy/resources efficiently.  Detailed procedures concerning the IPPC licensing process are set out in the EPA Acts 1992 to 2007.

    Waste Water Discharge Authorisation
    Legislation introduced in December 2007 states that all discharges from Local Authority sewerage systems require a wastewater discharge licence or certificate of authorisation which is issued by the Environmental Protection Agency.  Municipal wastewater discharges from the main towns in South Tipperary are currently being licensed by the EPA (April 2009).


    Waste Licences
    The Environmental Protection Agency issue Waste Licences for certain activities in the waste sector including, landfills, transfer stations, hazardous waste disposal and other significant waste recovery and disposal activities.  The EPA licence both privately operated sites and those operated by Local Authorities. Details of the Waste Licences in South Tipperary are available from


    Environmental Controls for New Developments

    All planning applications with the potential to impact on the environment are referred to the Environment Section.  Impacts on the environment such as noise, air emissions, waste management issues, discharges to water etc are examined.  Any additional licensing requirements are highlighted to the applicant and where necessary conditions controlling or limiting environmental impacts are imposed on the development.