Laois County Council Accepts EPA Criticism Over Environmental Enforcement

The EPA report ranked Laois as the country's third worst-performing local authority.

Laois County Council says it accepts the EPA's assessment of its shortcomings when it comes to environmental enforcement.

The Environmental Protection Agency's report placed Laois as the third worst performing local authority in the country behind just Sligo and Leitrim.

It met just 67% of the EPA's National Enforcement Priorities, compared to 87% in Offaly, and 80% in Westmeath.

It was also cited for being one of three councils along with Galway and Kildare for receiving the lowest rating for handling environment noise.

A spokesperson for the local authority in Laois says there were 19 councils that failed to meet the required standard in the area of noise but will examine the EPA's feedback work to strengthen its approach to noise action planning and implementation.

Statement in full:

Laois County Council welcomes the publication of the EPA’s Local Authority Environmental Enforcement Performance Report 2025 and acknowledges the important role of the EPA’s National Enforcement Priorities in supporting consistent and effective environmental protection across local authorities.

Laois County Council achieved the required standard in 10 of the 15 National Enforcement Priorities and performed strongly in a number of key areas, including illegal waste enforcement, water quality protection, governance processes, environmental inspection planning and enforcement data reporting. 

These are important areas of day-to-day environmental protection work and reflect the ongoing commitment of Council staff to compliance, enforcement and improvement.

Laois County Council accepts the EPA’s assessment as part of the national performance framework and recognises that there are areas where further progress is required. The Council is reviewing the findings in detail and will use the report to help improve performance in those NEPs where the required standard was not met. The Council will continue to work with the EPA and regional structures to support improved environmental outcomes for County Laois.

In relation to environmental noise, the EPA rating refers to activities under the Environmental Noise Directive, particularly the implementation of Noise Action Plans. This includes noise associated with major roads and transport corridors, i.e. traffic-related noise. The EPA report notes that this was the lowest-performing NEP nationally, with 19 local authorities below the required standard, and identifies challenges such as funding and access to specialist expertise.

Laois County Council will examine the EPA feedback in this area and work to strengthen its approach to noise action planning and implementation.

Overall, Laois County Council views the report as a constructive assessment and an opportunity to build on areas of strong performance while addressing those areas where improvement is needed.