Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 27th May, 2016.

I, SIMON COVENEY, Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 3 of the European Communities Act 1972 (No. 27 of 1972) and for the purpose of giving effect to Directive 2014/101/EU of 30 October 2014¹ amending Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy hereby make the following Regulations:

1. These Regulations may be cited as the European Union Environmental Objectives (Standards for Monitoring of Quality Elements) Regulations 2016.

2. In these Regulations—

“Agency” means the Environmental Protection Agency;

“Water Framework Directive” means Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy.

3. The Agency, and any other person or body as appropriate, in undertaking the monitoring requirements of the Water Framework Directive as laid out in the European Communities Environmental Objectives (Surface Waters) Regulations ( S.I. No. 272 of 2009 ), as amended, shall employ the standards for monitoring of quality elements listed in Schedule 1.

4. Methods used for the monitoring of type parameters shall conform to the international standards listed in Schedule 1 in so far as they cover monitoring, or to such other national or international standards as will ensure the provision of data of an equivalent scientific quality and comparability.

Schedule 1: Standards for monitoring of quality elements

Standards for sampling of biological quality elements:

Generic methods for use with the specific methods given in the standards relating to the following biological quality elements:

Standards for phytoplankton:

Standards for macrophyte and Phytobenthos:

Standards for benthic invertebrate:

Standards for fish:

Standards for hydromorphological parameters:

Standards for physico-chemical parameters:

GIVEN under my Official Seal,

19 May 2016.

SIMON COVENEY,

Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation)

These Regulations give effect to Directive 2014/101/EU, which amends Annex V of the Water Framework Directive.

Annex V of the Water Framework Directive set out the parameters and criteria required to help ensure that the monitoring and assessment of water across all Member States was uniform and consistent. It established a number of international standards for monitoring of the quality elements related to macroinvertebrates used to classify water quality.

Since the adoption of the Water Framework Directive, a number of new standards have been published, which address sampling of phytoplankton; macrophytes and phytobenthos; benthic invertebrates; fish and hydromorphological standards. Directive 2014/101/EU updates section 1.3.6 of the Water Framework Directive to include these standards and removes some of the standards listed which are now obsolete.

Ireland had not previously transposed section 1.3.6 of Annex V of the Water Framework Directive and these Regulations now transpose that section as amended by Directive 2014/101/EU.

1 O.J. No. L311/32, 31 October 2014