53A.—(1) The operator of a landfill facility (other than an internal landfill facility), or such other facility for the disposal of waste as may be prescribed for the purposes of this subsection, shall impose charges in respect of the disposal of waste at the facility.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), different amounts of charges may be imposed under subsection (1) in respect of different disposals of waste at the facility concerned.

(3) The amount or amounts of charges imposed under subsection (1) shall be such as the operator of the facility concerned determines is likely to ensure that the result specified in subsection (4) is achieved.

(4) The result referred to in subsection (3) is that the aggregate of the amount of charges imposed by the operator, in relation to the facility concerned, during the relevant period will not be less than the amount that would meet the total of the following costs (irrespective of whether those costs, or any of them, have been or will be met from other financial measures available to the operator), namely—

(a) the costs incurred by the operator in the acquisition or development, or both (as the case may be), of the facility,

(b) the costs of operating the facility during the relevant period (including the costs of making any financial provision under section 53), and

(c) the estimated costs, during a period of not less than 30 years or such greater period as may be prescribed, of the closure, restoration, remediation or aftercare of the facility.

(5) The operator of the facility concerned shall prepare a statement in writing in respect of the determination he or she makes under subsection (3) in each year of the amounts of charges and that statement shall specify the method he or she has employed in making that determination and the assumptions and any relevant accounting principles he or she has used for the purpose of that method.

(6) A copy of a statement prepared under subsection (5) shall be furnished by the operator to the Agency not later than 1 month following the end of the year to which the statement relates.

(7) An operator who fails to comply with subsection (6) shall be guilty of an offence.

(8) The Agency shall not grant a licence or revised licence in respect of the disposal of waste at a facility referred to in subsection (1) unless it is satisfied that the proposed licensee or licensee will take or will continue to take steps to comply with this section.

(9) The Minister may by regulations make such incidental, consequential or supplementary provision as may appear to him or her to be necessary or proper to give full effect to any of the provisions of this section.

(10) In this section—

“internal landfill facility” means a landfill facility that is used solely for the disposal of waste produced by an activity (other than one involving the sorting, mixing or segregation of waste or the recovery of materials from waste) and is operated by or on behalf of the person carrying on that activity;

“relevant period” means such period as the Agency determines to be appropriate for the purposes of Article 10 of the Council Directive 99/31/EC¹ in relation to the facility concerned and specifies in writing for the purposes of this section.]