Following an audit of a number of quarries in Co Donegal, "corrective action" was taken against three operators, according to a report published today.
The "Report of the Market Surveillance of Construction Products produced from County Donegal Quarries", is the result of an audit to evaluate the compliance of concrete block manufacturers and quarries producing aggregates for concrete with the Construction Products Regulation.
It found that, in general, there was a level of formal non-compliance with the requirements of the Construction Products Regulation among economic operators in Donegal.
The report, however, says that these issues primarily related to errors in and omissions of the paperwork and did not reflect a concern with the tested performance of the products themselves.
Overall, 17 economic operators were checked, and this included nine concrete blocks manufacturers whose blocks were sampled to determine the level of technical compliance with the regulations.
The report states that corrective actions were taken against three economic operators. Two of them, referred to in the report as Operators F and G, had their certification withdrawn.
The report states that there were no adverse results in relation to the performance of the concrete blocks and that one operator had their FPC certificate reissued and the second is in the process of re-applying for certification.
A third manufacturer, Economic Operator B, of aggregates for concrete had a technical non-compliance.
This manufacturer was required to take corrective actions which included adjustments to its FPC process and has since regained certification.
This audit was undertaken by the National Building Control and Market Surveillance Office in partnership with Donegal County Council and Geological Survey Ireland in the third quarter of 2021.
Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage Darragh O'Brien welcomed the publication of the report and said: "The result of this audit highlights the importance and value of active market surveillance in the quarrying sector and the need to continue this work in Donegal and on a nationwide basis.
"While much work has been undertaken to strengthen the regulatory framework to ensure that products from extractive industries comply with the provisions of the Construction Products Regulation, I acknowledge that there is more to do in the context of the findings of the audit report and the broader Programme for Government commitments."
The minister said his department is continuing to implement building control reforms and is progressing the establishment of an independent Building Standards Regulator to oversee building control nationwide and to act as custodian of the Building Control Management System.
"We know what has happened in the past, the impact of which a great number of people are still feeling, and Government will not be complacent on this issue," he said.
