Dear Editor --
I refer to your recent articles about the Environmental Protection Agency. While we appreciate the role of the media in scrutinising public bodies, we believe that your paper has misrepresented the EPA and misled the public in the impression it has created of the agency.
The EPA is an effective, well-run agency which provides significant benefit to Ireland's environment and to our health and well-being. These are not our words: they are the words of an independent government-appointed review group that reported its findings to the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government in May 2011.
The review group also concluded that the EPA was in compliance with its corporate governance obligations. If you have an interest in the facts on how effective the EPA is in delivering on its mission and providing value for money, you will find a copy of the review on either the site of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, or the EPA website at www.epa.ie
Since it was established in 1993, the EPA has had a profound impact on Ireland's environment. When the agency was founded 18 years ago, Ireland's environment was highly challenged.
Through the work of the EPA there have been very significant improvements in water quality, air quality, drinking water quality and waste management; and people are now more aware of the fragility and importance of our environment to our health and well-being and for the future of our children, than at any point in the past.
Compared to similar agencies in other countries, Ireland's EPA is relatively small, with 321 staff and a wide range of functions. The EPA represents Ireland and the Department of the Environment at EU and international negotiations. Any travel undertaken by officials and scientists is necessary and important. There are rigorous policies on travel (eg: flights are economy and the agency does not pay for travel for spouses or partners). In 2010, for example, of 333 assignments undertaken abroad, 57 per cent cost less than €200 with only three long-haul trips costing over €1,000.
The EPA operates to the highest standards of corporate governance and takes its corporate governance responsibilities extremely seriously. When the revised Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies came into force in 2009, the EPA itself commissioned the Institute of Public Administration to evaluate the EPA's compliance with the new code.
The IPA found as follows: "It is our opinion that corporate governance standards are given a high priority within the agency, that there are high levels of management awareness of corporate governance obligations and that these are kept under regular scrutiny and that, as appropriate, the agency's governance policies and practices are consistent with the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies."
During 2010, the Great Places to Work Institute awarded the EPA the Best Public Sector Company Award; we received accreditation from the National Disability Authority for our commitment to providing accessible services for the public and EPA headquarters achieved environmental certification to ISO 14001. We are rightly proud of these achievements and they help place the EPA in a strong position to deal with the very difficult challenges ahead.
A recent report by the National Economic and Social Council (NESC) cited the EPA as being one of Ireland's best agencies. This we attribute to the hard work, dedication and flexibility of EPA staff. We will continue to embrace change in these uncertain times and play our role in protecting and improving Ireland's environment, planning for a more sustainable future for our children and providing good value for money.
Yours sincerely,
Dr Matt Crowe
Director, Environmental
Protection Agency
Office of Communications and Corporate Services
Irish Independent
www.buckplanning.ie
Showing posts with label EPA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label EPA. Show all posts
Tuesday, 26 July 2011
Saturday, 22 December 2007
EPA to decide quickly if it will hold Poolbeg hearing
A new oral hearing into the Poolbeg incinerator could be conducted next year by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) following the receipt of objections to its proposal to grant a licence for the facility.
The EPA said yesterday it would decide "as soon as possible" in the New Year whether to accede to requests for the hearing.
The incinerator, which would be Dublin's first municipal waste incinerator and one of the largest in Europe, was granted planning permission by An Bord Pleanála in November following a lengthy oral hearing this year.
Within days of the Bord Pleanála decision, the EPA announced its intention to grant a waste licence to Dublin City Council to operate the facility. A 28-day period of statutory public consultation on the proposal ensued. The consultation phase is now at an end, and the EPA has received 14 valid objections and eight requests for an oral hearing.
Had no objections or requests for a hearing been received, the board of the EPA would have automatically made a final decision at the end of the consultation period. However, it will now consider the possibility of a hearing.
"The closing date for submissions was just this week, and no decision on the requests for an oral hearing has been made yet, but that decision will be made in the New Year as early as possible," a spokeswoman said.
Objections to the licence were made by several politicians, local residents' groups and individuals.
Minister for the Environment John Gormley, before his appointment as Minister, made an objection to the potential granting of a licence in a letter dated October 5th, 2006.
Combined Residents Against Incineration, Sandymount and Merrion Residents' Association and the Ringsend Irishtown and Sandymount Environmental Group also made objections.
The Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
The EPA said yesterday it would decide "as soon as possible" in the New Year whether to accede to requests for the hearing.
The incinerator, which would be Dublin's first municipal waste incinerator and one of the largest in Europe, was granted planning permission by An Bord Pleanála in November following a lengthy oral hearing this year.
Within days of the Bord Pleanála decision, the EPA announced its intention to grant a waste licence to Dublin City Council to operate the facility. A 28-day period of statutory public consultation on the proposal ensued. The consultation phase is now at an end, and the EPA has received 14 valid objections and eight requests for an oral hearing.
Had no objections or requests for a hearing been received, the board of the EPA would have automatically made a final decision at the end of the consultation period. However, it will now consider the possibility of a hearing.
"The closing date for submissions was just this week, and no decision on the requests for an oral hearing has been made yet, but that decision will be made in the New Year as early as possible," a spokeswoman said.
Objections to the licence were made by several politicians, local residents' groups and individuals.
Minister for the Environment John Gormley, before his appointment as Minister, made an objection to the potential granting of a licence in a letter dated October 5th, 2006.
Combined Residents Against Incineration, Sandymount and Merrion Residents' Association and the Ringsend Irishtown and Sandymount Environmental Group also made objections.
The Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Monday, 3 September 2007
Protecting the economy of the environment
Ireland’s growing consumerism is posing challenges for the environment, according to the director general of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Mary Kelly.
‘‘The problem for Ireland is that our economic growth over the last number of years has made us so affluent and made us into more of a consumer society,” she said.
That affluence means that people have more effect on the environment, a situation Kelly hopes to change. She said a cultural shift was needed to make Irish people more aware of their environment and the importance of making small changes in their day-to-day living.
Kelly has a busy week ahead, as environmental policymakers meet this week at the third annual Environment Ireland conference to discuss the key challenges facing the Irish environment. The conference is organised in association with the EPA and the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government.
More than 300 delegates are expected to attend the two-day conference on Monday and Tuesday, making it Ireland’s largest conference on environmental policy and management.
Delegates will be looking to the future, with the theme of ‘Towards 2020: the environment in Ireland’s future’.
‘‘We’ve mapped out six priorities - climate change, clean water, clean air, sustainable use of resources, soils and biodiversity and the enforcement and integration of the environment into other areas like economic policy,’’ Kelly said.
Despite environmental issues featuring strongly in the media and on the political agenda - particularly with the Green Party in government - Kelly said there was much work to be done. Creating a greener environment should be a priority for all groups in society, she said.
‘‘One of the things we said at the outset was that, while we can set an EPA vision for Ireland’s environment in 2020,we cannot achieve it on our own. We are very conscious that we are not the sole people with responsibility for the environment.
‘‘Part of the challenge for us is to engage with all the other stakeholders. Part of the challenge is how you get people to line up with you. It’s not just official Ireland, it’s everybody,” she said.
Kelly said environmental issues had come to the fore in recent years and were featuring more prominently on the political agenda. She said that the role of Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in chairing a cabinet sub-committee on climate change was evidence of the increased important of the environment in political circles.
‘‘I’d say ten years ago that would not have been a runner,” she added.
The EPA last week launched a report on climate change conducted by the Irish Climate Analysis and Research Unit (Icarus) at NUI Maynooth.
The report indicated that the signals of climate change were evident in recent Irish meteorological records, with average temperatures rising by just under one degree Celsius in the last 100 years.
‘‘It is necessary to consider and develop actions which will allow us to adapt to future climate conditions in order to avoid adverse impacts,” Kelly said.
She said the reference to sustainable use of resources in the EPA plan also related to waste management.
‘‘What’s more important than waste management is not having the waste in the first place. Instead of calling it waste management, we have actually said sustainable use of resources. We are trying to prevent the amount of waste being created,” she said.
Enforcing environmental legislation is another issue that Ireland needs to address, according to Kelly.
‘‘It is very important that when you have environmental laws, you enforce them. Ireland has not got a great record with the [European] Commission. Now that we are an affluent country, we can longer drag our heels and not comply with directives,” she said.
Kelly said Ireland needed to improve its record in a number of specific areas, such as dealing with waste, the provision of clean water and also the preservation of bird habitats.
The EPA is also responsible for licensing waste facilities, large-scale industrial activities, intensive agriculture and large petrol-storage facilities. It conducts more than 2,000 audits a year on EPA-licensed facilities.
‘‘A big part of what we do is as a regulator. We regulate big industry and also the whole waste industry. We issue licences and all of our licences have very strict conditions on them. It’s up to us then to enforce those conditions,” said Kelly.
She said it was very unusual for a licence application to be rejected, given that any company applying would know the standards in place.
‘‘In general, a company applying to us will have read all the guidance and will often hire consultants to help them put the application together. It’s a complex procedure. We would want to know every emission from every emission point. We would have told them what the limits were and they would have to achieve them.
‘‘The planning system and the environmental licensing system are very separate, yet parallel systems. So, for example, if a company is going to situate in Ireland, it needs to get planning permission and it needs to separately get an environmental licence.
‘‘We don’t require a company to have planning permission before they come to us. Companies can progress the two applications at the same time. It’s not a given that if they get planning permission, they will definitely be granted a licence from us or vice versa.”
Another part of the EPA’s brief is quantifying Ireland’s emissions of greenhouse gases and implementing the Emissions Trading Directive.
There are more than 100 companies - each of which is a major generator of carbon dioxide - in Ireland involved in the scheme, which allows companies to trade allowances for carbon emissions. The emission allowances are traded across Europe, as with any other commodity.
‘‘What we have gone through to date is a pilot phase. We’ll be into the Kyoto phase from2008 to 2012,when penalties will start to apply. There are 120 or so firms in Ireland and 12,000 across Europe that have to engage with it,’’ Kelly said.
The EPA will launch a geographic information system (GIS) at this week’s conference. This free mapping service, which will be available on the EPA website, will allow people to get a snapshot of their local environment.
The service, which Kelly likened to Google Earth, will help people to find out about facilities with EPA licences in their area, along with environmental issues, including local water and air quality.
What is the EPA?
The Environmental Protection Agency is an independent statutory public body responsible for protecting the environment in Ireland.
It was established in July 1993, under the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992. It regulates and polices activities that may cause pollution, as well as collating information on environmental trends.
Mary Kelly took over as director general of the EPA in May 2002,after working for employers’ body Ibec in an environmental policy role.
She was involved in setting up Repak, the packaging recycling initiative, and was also a member of Comhar and the committee of the EPA.
Kelly holds a PhD in Chemistry from Trinity College Dublin and an MBA from Dublin City University.
Sunday Business Post
‘‘The problem for Ireland is that our economic growth over the last number of years has made us so affluent and made us into more of a consumer society,” she said.
That affluence means that people have more effect on the environment, a situation Kelly hopes to change. She said a cultural shift was needed to make Irish people more aware of their environment and the importance of making small changes in their day-to-day living.
Kelly has a busy week ahead, as environmental policymakers meet this week at the third annual Environment Ireland conference to discuss the key challenges facing the Irish environment. The conference is organised in association with the EPA and the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government.
More than 300 delegates are expected to attend the two-day conference on Monday and Tuesday, making it Ireland’s largest conference on environmental policy and management.
Delegates will be looking to the future, with the theme of ‘Towards 2020: the environment in Ireland’s future’.
‘‘We’ve mapped out six priorities - climate change, clean water, clean air, sustainable use of resources, soils and biodiversity and the enforcement and integration of the environment into other areas like economic policy,’’ Kelly said.
Despite environmental issues featuring strongly in the media and on the political agenda - particularly with the Green Party in government - Kelly said there was much work to be done. Creating a greener environment should be a priority for all groups in society, she said.
‘‘One of the things we said at the outset was that, while we can set an EPA vision for Ireland’s environment in 2020,we cannot achieve it on our own. We are very conscious that we are not the sole people with responsibility for the environment.
‘‘Part of the challenge for us is to engage with all the other stakeholders. Part of the challenge is how you get people to line up with you. It’s not just official Ireland, it’s everybody,” she said.
Kelly said environmental issues had come to the fore in recent years and were featuring more prominently on the political agenda. She said that the role of Taoiseach Bertie Ahern in chairing a cabinet sub-committee on climate change was evidence of the increased important of the environment in political circles.
‘‘I’d say ten years ago that would not have been a runner,” she added.
The EPA last week launched a report on climate change conducted by the Irish Climate Analysis and Research Unit (Icarus) at NUI Maynooth.
The report indicated that the signals of climate change were evident in recent Irish meteorological records, with average temperatures rising by just under one degree Celsius in the last 100 years.
‘‘It is necessary to consider and develop actions which will allow us to adapt to future climate conditions in order to avoid adverse impacts,” Kelly said.
She said the reference to sustainable use of resources in the EPA plan also related to waste management.
‘‘What’s more important than waste management is not having the waste in the first place. Instead of calling it waste management, we have actually said sustainable use of resources. We are trying to prevent the amount of waste being created,” she said.
Enforcing environmental legislation is another issue that Ireland needs to address, according to Kelly.
‘‘It is very important that when you have environmental laws, you enforce them. Ireland has not got a great record with the [European] Commission. Now that we are an affluent country, we can longer drag our heels and not comply with directives,” she said.
Kelly said Ireland needed to improve its record in a number of specific areas, such as dealing with waste, the provision of clean water and also the preservation of bird habitats.
The EPA is also responsible for licensing waste facilities, large-scale industrial activities, intensive agriculture and large petrol-storage facilities. It conducts more than 2,000 audits a year on EPA-licensed facilities.
‘‘A big part of what we do is as a regulator. We regulate big industry and also the whole waste industry. We issue licences and all of our licences have very strict conditions on them. It’s up to us then to enforce those conditions,” said Kelly.
She said it was very unusual for a licence application to be rejected, given that any company applying would know the standards in place.
‘‘In general, a company applying to us will have read all the guidance and will often hire consultants to help them put the application together. It’s a complex procedure. We would want to know every emission from every emission point. We would have told them what the limits were and they would have to achieve them.
‘‘The planning system and the environmental licensing system are very separate, yet parallel systems. So, for example, if a company is going to situate in Ireland, it needs to get planning permission and it needs to separately get an environmental licence.
‘‘We don’t require a company to have planning permission before they come to us. Companies can progress the two applications at the same time. It’s not a given that if they get planning permission, they will definitely be granted a licence from us or vice versa.”
Another part of the EPA’s brief is quantifying Ireland’s emissions of greenhouse gases and implementing the Emissions Trading Directive.
There are more than 100 companies - each of which is a major generator of carbon dioxide - in Ireland involved in the scheme, which allows companies to trade allowances for carbon emissions. The emission allowances are traded across Europe, as with any other commodity.
‘‘What we have gone through to date is a pilot phase. We’ll be into the Kyoto phase from2008 to 2012,when penalties will start to apply. There are 120 or so firms in Ireland and 12,000 across Europe that have to engage with it,’’ Kelly said.
The EPA will launch a geographic information system (GIS) at this week’s conference. This free mapping service, which will be available on the EPA website, will allow people to get a snapshot of their local environment.
The service, which Kelly likened to Google Earth, will help people to find out about facilities with EPA licences in their area, along with environmental issues, including local water and air quality.
What is the EPA?
The Environmental Protection Agency is an independent statutory public body responsible for protecting the environment in Ireland.
It was established in July 1993, under the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992. It regulates and polices activities that may cause pollution, as well as collating information on environmental trends.
Mary Kelly took over as director general of the EPA in May 2002,after working for employers’ body Ibec in an environmental policy role.
She was involved in setting up Repak, the packaging recycling initiative, and was also a member of Comhar and the committee of the EPA.
Kelly holds a PhD in Chemistry from Trinity College Dublin and an MBA from Dublin City University.
Sunday Business Post
Friday, 31 August 2007
Gormley launches new EPA report on indicators of climate change in Ireland
A new report for the Environmental Protection Agency, launched today (29 August 2007) by the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, John Gormley, T.D., confirms that the impacts of climate changes are already happening in Ireland and are accelerating. The report is based on meteorological records of Met Éireann.
The report, ‘Key Meteorological Indicators of Climate Change in Ireland, was prepared by researchers at the Irish Climate Analysis and Research Units (ICARUS) at NUI Maynooth.
Speaking at the launch of the report, the Minister commented, “The report is further confirmation that the impacts of climate change are already happening in Ireland and are accelerating. This report confirms that annual rainfall has increased in the north and west. Not only is it raining more frequently, but the volume and intensity of rainfall is increasing. These conclusions will be self-evident to anybody who has holidayed at home this summer.” The report shows us the absolute need for the people of Ireland to play their part in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and tackling climate change,” added Minister Gormley
Minister Gormley recently met the Taoiseach, during which they had a lengthy discussion about climate change-related issues, including the agenda of the cabinet sub committee and the establishment of a special climate change commission.
The cabinet sub committee on climate change which will be meeting for the first time in the coming two weeks will have a central role in formulating and implementing Government policies and initiatives in this area.
“The establishment of a special cabinet sub committee, which includes the Taoiseach, is an indication of the priority this Government is attaching to addressing climate change,” Minister Gormley said, The committee and the Government have an ambitious and challenging programme of work ahead in tackling the climate change issue, in both the shorter and longer term.
The Minister said, “I envisage that by the end of the year there will be a number of positive initiatives on reducing emissions in Ireland. These include proposals for rebalancing VRT and motor tax, the establishment of a climate change commission, and ambitious new energy efficiency targets for new homes.”
However he added that climate change is a global issue that needed to be tackled collectively by all countries.
Minister Gormley, at the request of the Taoiseach, will be traveling to the UN in New York next month to represent Ireland and address a heads of State meeting which will be discussing climate change,
The Minister noted that the report underlines the importance of the EU objective of limiting average global temperature increases to no more than 2°C above pre-industrial levels. "Ireland has fully and consistently supported this EU objective," the Minister said. "We are on course to meet our commitments under the Kyoto Protocol" he added "and we fully support the EU position on further ambitious reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in the period to 2020 and beyond".
The Minister confirmed the intention of the Government to put in place a national strategy on adaptation to address future impacts of climate change in Ireland. “This will provide the framework for integrating the predicted impacts of climate change into decision-making at national and local level. It is important that we put in place this framework as soon as possible, so that, particularly in areas such as infrastructure, planning, water services and coastal management, we do not end up making the wrong types of expensive investments in the wrong places.”
The EPA report Key Meteorological Indicators of Climate Change in Ireland updates and expands the work of an earlier report, Climate Change: Indicators for Ireland, which was published in 2002. The report is the latest in a series commissioned by the EPA’s Environmental Research Centre, and is funded by the Irish Government under the National Development Plan.
The main findings of the present report are:
Ireland’s mean annual temperature has increased by 0.7°C between 1890 and 2004.
The average rate of increase is 0.06°C per decade. However, as Ireland experiences considerable climate variability, the trend is not linear.
The highest ten yearly rate of increase has occurred since 1980, with a warming rate of 0.42°C per decade.
Six of the ten warmest years have occurred since 1990; however, 1945 was the warmest year on record.
There has been a reduction in the number of frost days and a shortening of the frost season length.
The annual precipitation has increased on the north and west coasts, with decreases or small increases in the south and east.
The wetter conditions on the west and north coastal regions appear due to increased in rainfall intensity and persistence.
There is an increase in precipitation events over 10mm on the west coast with decreases on the east coast; there is an increase in the amount of rain per rain day on the west coast.
The report notes that it is imperative to monitor key climate variables in order to identify trends, which may be an important guide for future change. Climate indicators for Ireland are based primarily on daily synoptic (summary) weather station temperature and precipitation data from Met Éireann’s monitoring network.
The report, ‘Key Meteorological Indicators of Climate Change in Ireland, was prepared by researchers at the Irish Climate Analysis and Research Units (ICARUS) at NUI Maynooth.
Speaking at the launch of the report, the Minister commented, “The report is further confirmation that the impacts of climate change are already happening in Ireland and are accelerating. This report confirms that annual rainfall has increased in the north and west. Not only is it raining more frequently, but the volume and intensity of rainfall is increasing. These conclusions will be self-evident to anybody who has holidayed at home this summer.” The report shows us the absolute need for the people of Ireland to play their part in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and tackling climate change,” added Minister Gormley
Minister Gormley recently met the Taoiseach, during which they had a lengthy discussion about climate change-related issues, including the agenda of the cabinet sub committee and the establishment of a special climate change commission.
The cabinet sub committee on climate change which will be meeting for the first time in the coming two weeks will have a central role in formulating and implementing Government policies and initiatives in this area.
“The establishment of a special cabinet sub committee, which includes the Taoiseach, is an indication of the priority this Government is attaching to addressing climate change,” Minister Gormley said, The committee and the Government have an ambitious and challenging programme of work ahead in tackling the climate change issue, in both the shorter and longer term.
The Minister said, “I envisage that by the end of the year there will be a number of positive initiatives on reducing emissions in Ireland. These include proposals for rebalancing VRT and motor tax, the establishment of a climate change commission, and ambitious new energy efficiency targets for new homes.”
However he added that climate change is a global issue that needed to be tackled collectively by all countries.
Minister Gormley, at the request of the Taoiseach, will be traveling to the UN in New York next month to represent Ireland and address a heads of State meeting which will be discussing climate change,
The Minister noted that the report underlines the importance of the EU objective of limiting average global temperature increases to no more than 2°C above pre-industrial levels. "Ireland has fully and consistently supported this EU objective," the Minister said. "We are on course to meet our commitments under the Kyoto Protocol" he added "and we fully support the EU position on further ambitious reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in the period to 2020 and beyond".
The Minister confirmed the intention of the Government to put in place a national strategy on adaptation to address future impacts of climate change in Ireland. “This will provide the framework for integrating the predicted impacts of climate change into decision-making at national and local level. It is important that we put in place this framework as soon as possible, so that, particularly in areas such as infrastructure, planning, water services and coastal management, we do not end up making the wrong types of expensive investments in the wrong places.”
The EPA report Key Meteorological Indicators of Climate Change in Ireland updates and expands the work of an earlier report, Climate Change: Indicators for Ireland, which was published in 2002. The report is the latest in a series commissioned by the EPA’s Environmental Research Centre, and is funded by the Irish Government under the National Development Plan.
The main findings of the present report are:
Ireland’s mean annual temperature has increased by 0.7°C between 1890 and 2004.
The average rate of increase is 0.06°C per decade. However, as Ireland experiences considerable climate variability, the trend is not linear.
The highest ten yearly rate of increase has occurred since 1980, with a warming rate of 0.42°C per decade.
Six of the ten warmest years have occurred since 1990; however, 1945 was the warmest year on record.
There has been a reduction in the number of frost days and a shortening of the frost season length.
The annual precipitation has increased on the north and west coasts, with decreases or small increases in the south and east.
The wetter conditions on the west and north coastal regions appear due to increased in rainfall intensity and persistence.
There is an increase in precipitation events over 10mm on the west coast with decreases on the east coast; there is an increase in the amount of rain per rain day on the west coast.
The report notes that it is imperative to monitor key climate variables in order to identify trends, which may be an important guide for future change. Climate indicators for Ireland are based primarily on daily synoptic (summary) weather station temperature and precipitation data from Met Éireann’s monitoring network.
Tuesday, 21 August 2007
We'll drink to that . . . cheers and fears as water crisis finally over
ANOTHER contaminated tap water crisis could break out on the same scale as the deadly Galway outbreak which finally ended yesterday. The Environmental Protection Agency last night issued a warning to all local authorities that they had to provide safe drinking water.
Gerard O'Leary, EPA programme manager, said the agency had directed Galway city council to install an ultraviolet light disinfection system at the Terryland New plant. This system provides an effective barrier to cryptosporidium entering the drinking water supply.
"The cryptosporidium contamination incident in Galway city, and more recently in Clonmel, is a timely reminder to all local authorities of the importance of both the need for source protection and provision of adequate treatment facilities," said the EPA chief.
The culprits behind the crisis which affected 90,000 people and left hundreds very ill escaped scot free, it was also revealed yesterday.
Five months later, and at a cost of millions in lost tourism revenue, the green light was finally given for householders to drink their water in Galway.
Officials suspect septic tanks belonging to householders were to blame for polluting Lough Corrib from which the water is drawn.
But yesterday they admitted: "It is unlikely that a point source or sources of the outbreak will ever be identified."
Politicians were furious that the authorities were unable to track down the cause of the contamination.
They warned that a similar outbreak could easily happen as other tap water supplies nationwide are also polluted.
As much as 30pc of groundwater sources from which tap water is abstracted and treated contains cryptosporidium and e-coli bugs which can be fatal in elderly or those with poor immune systems.
The EU is threatening to take Ireland to court for not forcing local authorities to provide safe drinking water around the country.
HSE officials and city and county engineers in Galway confirmed yesterday they are satisfied that water supplies no longer need to be boiled and are drinkable.
Up to 90,000 people have been forced to either boil water before use or buy bottled supplies since the outbreak of cryptosporidium in March.
The HSE yesterday said people could now use tap water in Galway for drinking, food preparation, ice making and teeth brushing without first boiling it, unless they are immuno-compromised and have had specific advice from their family doctor.
The decision follows the installation, testing and commissioning of an ultraviolet light disinfection system at the Terryland water treatment plant where water is subjected to three separate treatment processes.
These are chemical treatment, full filtration and ultra violet disinfection.
Barrier
The UV disinfection is the largest of its kind in the country and provides an additional barrier against cryptosporidium.
The old Terryland water treatment plant is no longer in use and additional water is supplied to Galway City from Galway County Council's Luimnagh water treatment plant.
Galway City Council and Galway County Council have set up a helpline for further questions relating to the water supply. This number is 091 536400 (office hours).
John Power, Irish Hotels Federation chief executive, said the outbreak "showed the weakness in how local authorities operate safe water systems". Opposition politicians warned that the Galway water crisis could recur due to the failure to find a definitive cause.
They also expressed concern at the lack of investment in sewage treatment plants.
Fine Gael Galway West TD Padraic McCormack said it was "incredible" that the HSE West had failed to discover the source of the water contamination.
"Is the HSE now saying that everything in the garden is rosy? I believe they should establish the cause, so that it can be eliminated," he said
Mr McCormack said the early testing for water contamination had pointed to human waste, which could have come from any of the towns and villages around Galway city still lacking sewage treatment plants.
"There's one under way in Headford but Claregalway, Oughterard, Clonbur and Corrnamona don't have any. This is due to the neglect of the Government over the past 10 years when we had plenty of money but no progress on sewerage schemes."
(c) Irish Independent
Gerard O'Leary, EPA programme manager, said the agency had directed Galway city council to install an ultraviolet light disinfection system at the Terryland New plant. This system provides an effective barrier to cryptosporidium entering the drinking water supply.
"The cryptosporidium contamination incident in Galway city, and more recently in Clonmel, is a timely reminder to all local authorities of the importance of both the need for source protection and provision of adequate treatment facilities," said the EPA chief.
The culprits behind the crisis which affected 90,000 people and left hundreds very ill escaped scot free, it was also revealed yesterday.
Five months later, and at a cost of millions in lost tourism revenue, the green light was finally given for householders to drink their water in Galway.
Officials suspect septic tanks belonging to householders were to blame for polluting Lough Corrib from which the water is drawn.
But yesterday they admitted: "It is unlikely that a point source or sources of the outbreak will ever be identified."
Politicians were furious that the authorities were unable to track down the cause of the contamination.
They warned that a similar outbreak could easily happen as other tap water supplies nationwide are also polluted.
As much as 30pc of groundwater sources from which tap water is abstracted and treated contains cryptosporidium and e-coli bugs which can be fatal in elderly or those with poor immune systems.
The EU is threatening to take Ireland to court for not forcing local authorities to provide safe drinking water around the country.
HSE officials and city and county engineers in Galway confirmed yesterday they are satisfied that water supplies no longer need to be boiled and are drinkable.
Up to 90,000 people have been forced to either boil water before use or buy bottled supplies since the outbreak of cryptosporidium in March.
The HSE yesterday said people could now use tap water in Galway for drinking, food preparation, ice making and teeth brushing without first boiling it, unless they are immuno-compromised and have had specific advice from their family doctor.
The decision follows the installation, testing and commissioning of an ultraviolet light disinfection system at the Terryland water treatment plant where water is subjected to three separate treatment processes.
These are chemical treatment, full filtration and ultra violet disinfection.
Barrier
The UV disinfection is the largest of its kind in the country and provides an additional barrier against cryptosporidium.
The old Terryland water treatment plant is no longer in use and additional water is supplied to Galway City from Galway County Council's Luimnagh water treatment plant.
Galway City Council and Galway County Council have set up a helpline for further questions relating to the water supply. This number is 091 536400 (office hours).
John Power, Irish Hotels Federation chief executive, said the outbreak "showed the weakness in how local authorities operate safe water systems". Opposition politicians warned that the Galway water crisis could recur due to the failure to find a definitive cause.
They also expressed concern at the lack of investment in sewage treatment plants.
Fine Gael Galway West TD Padraic McCormack said it was "incredible" that the HSE West had failed to discover the source of the water contamination.
"Is the HSE now saying that everything in the garden is rosy? I believe they should establish the cause, so that it can be eliminated," he said
Mr McCormack said the early testing for water contamination had pointed to human waste, which could have come from any of the towns and villages around Galway city still lacking sewage treatment plants.
"There's one under way in Headford but Claregalway, Oughterard, Clonbur and Corrnamona don't have any. This is due to the neglect of the Government over the past 10 years when we had plenty of money but no progress on sewerage schemes."
(c) Irish Independent
Friday, 15 June 2007
In Court with the EPA
THE ENVIRONMENTAL Protection Agency (EPA) has been busy so far this year, successfully prosecuting six companies for pollution. Some of them are unlikely to be too bothered, however. Francis and Carol Mallon in Liffey Meats (Cavan) (LMC) are old hands at this pollution business, of course, and the EPA has prosecuted their Ballyjamesduff company no less than five times. This year's skirmish with the regulations saw LMC plead guilty to three charges relating to a lack of control over emissions into a local river. This landed the company with a paltry €2,000 fine in Virginia District Court, although Judge Seán McBride did throw in the EPA's costs of €13,000.
The secretive pair moved their cash offshore to the Isle of Man recently and now own LMC through the Douglas registered Touleen Unlimited, while LMC itself went unlimited last year and no longer has to file accounts. Before these manoeuvres, Touleen Ltd - the original holding company - boasted a whopping €9.5m in accumulated profits at the end of June 2004.
Another beef baron who will be similarly untroubled by an EPA prosecution is Liam Keating, the chief sibling in the family-owned Kepak (although this is run by John Horgan). Kepak Athleague, an unlimited Roscommon-based subsidiary, recently pleaded guilty to allowing too many emissions into the nearby River Suck and also for “providing the (EPA) with information that was false or misleading in a material respect”. According to the EPA, this had the potential to contaminate the river and Judge Browne imposed fines on Kepak Athleague totalling just €4,000 and awarded the EPA costs of €6,500. This is unlikely to cost directors Keating, Horgan, Bernard Mannion and Robert Grogan too much sleep.
Dynea Ireland Ltd, meanwhile, came off slightly worse down in Cobh District Court. This subsidiary of a Finnish industrial giant was recently hit with the biggest fine of the year so far, having pleaded guilty to four charges of letting off “non-compliant emissions” into the atmosphere. The company was found guilty of not providing this info to the EPA and Judge Michael Patwell slapped a €13,000 fine on Dynea Ireland, plus €10,000 in costs. The directors here - including Tom Vestli and Ilpo Jalmari Koivisto in Finland along with local boys Joseph Giltinan and Liam Moynihan - might be slightly more worried at this setback, considering accumulated losses here were €2.9m at the end of 2005.
© The Phoenix
The secretive pair moved their cash offshore to the Isle of Man recently and now own LMC through the Douglas registered Touleen Unlimited, while LMC itself went unlimited last year and no longer has to file accounts. Before these manoeuvres, Touleen Ltd - the original holding company - boasted a whopping €9.5m in accumulated profits at the end of June 2004.
Another beef baron who will be similarly untroubled by an EPA prosecution is Liam Keating, the chief sibling in the family-owned Kepak (although this is run by John Horgan). Kepak Athleague, an unlimited Roscommon-based subsidiary, recently pleaded guilty to allowing too many emissions into the nearby River Suck and also for “providing the (EPA) with information that was false or misleading in a material respect”. According to the EPA, this had the potential to contaminate the river and Judge Browne imposed fines on Kepak Athleague totalling just €4,000 and awarded the EPA costs of €6,500. This is unlikely to cost directors Keating, Horgan, Bernard Mannion and Robert Grogan too much sleep.
Dynea Ireland Ltd, meanwhile, came off slightly worse down in Cobh District Court. This subsidiary of a Finnish industrial giant was recently hit with the biggest fine of the year so far, having pleaded guilty to four charges of letting off “non-compliant emissions” into the atmosphere. The company was found guilty of not providing this info to the EPA and Judge Michael Patwell slapped a €13,000 fine on Dynea Ireland, plus €10,000 in costs. The directors here - including Tom Vestli and Ilpo Jalmari Koivisto in Finland along with local boys Joseph Giltinan and Liam Moynihan - might be slightly more worried at this setback, considering accumulated losses here were €2.9m at the end of 2005.
© The Phoenix
Friday, 11 May 2007
EPA urged to prevent Galway land rezoning
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been urged to prevent a land rezoning in south Galway that threatens the future of the Clarenbridge oyster industry.
Labour Party president and Galway West TD Michael D Higgins says if the EPA is to "have any credibility", it must intervene before Galway county councillors amend their county development plan on May 28th.
Earlier this year, councillors decided to make 17 material alterations to the Clarenbridge local area plan.
The material alterations resulted in an extra 115 acres of land within the village boundary being zoned for development - totalling 180 acres - in what is described as a "small settlement" in the county plan.
Residents say this would expand the village of just over 400 people to a suburb of up to 10,000 at a time when other suburban areas in Galway are suffering serious water contamination due to overdevelopment.
The move was made against the advice of the Galway county manager and planning officials, and some 333 submissions opposing the move have been filed.
Residents of the village point out that the adequate sewerage and water treatment infrastructure is not provided for in the Clarenbridge area plan.
Moreover, members of the Clarenbridge oyster community have argued that provision of adequate sewerage facilities is required if the 700 acres harvested in Dunbulcan Bay are to maintain "class A" status.
Local residents in Clarenbridge are supporting their demand for a permanent buffer zone of up to 400m (0.25 miles) on the eastern, northern and southern shores of the bay to protect their industry and the shoreline environment.
Drinking water in the area has already exceeded E.coli parameters, and the limestone aquifer on which the village is located holds the highest rating for vulnerability to pollution, according to Geological Survey of Ireland assessments. The issue underscores the fact that successive governments have failed to implement policy on coastal-zone management.
Supporters of a group known as the Concerned Clarenbridge Residents have contacted individual Galway councillors to seek their support for the proposed buffer zone.
The group argues that the oyster fisheries are world famous, and provide full and part-time work for 204 members of the oyster co-operative and their families.
This has a significant spin-off for the local economy, it emphasises, and is worth some €5 million annually.
To date, only one of 10 Fianna Fáil councillors and four of 10 Fine Gael councillors have confirmed to the grouping that they "agree with" the buffer zoning, while three Progressive Democrats councillors, three of four Independents, and the Sinn Féin and Labour representatives on the local authority have also said they support it.
Ms Bridgette Brew, spokeswoman for the residents, said that this indicated those councillors who didn't support the oyster industry were in favour of the rezoning.
Mr Higgins says he has contacted the EPA's Office of Environmental Enforcement on the issue to prevent "further environmental disaster in Galway". The agency must make its views known to councillors before the May 28th meeting, he says.
"Irresponsible action" has already destroyed a natural oyster bed at Clarenbridge, he points out.
Earlier this year, EPA director, Dr Mary Kelly, noted that enhanced powers given to the agency under the Protection of the Environment Act for "tackling environmental crime" had been used to good effect.
Lorna Siggins
© 2007 The Irish Times
Labour Party president and Galway West TD Michael D Higgins says if the EPA is to "have any credibility", it must intervene before Galway county councillors amend their county development plan on May 28th.
Earlier this year, councillors decided to make 17 material alterations to the Clarenbridge local area plan.
The material alterations resulted in an extra 115 acres of land within the village boundary being zoned for development - totalling 180 acres - in what is described as a "small settlement" in the county plan.
Residents say this would expand the village of just over 400 people to a suburb of up to 10,000 at a time when other suburban areas in Galway are suffering serious water contamination due to overdevelopment.
The move was made against the advice of the Galway county manager and planning officials, and some 333 submissions opposing the move have been filed.
Residents of the village point out that the adequate sewerage and water treatment infrastructure is not provided for in the Clarenbridge area plan.
Moreover, members of the Clarenbridge oyster community have argued that provision of adequate sewerage facilities is required if the 700 acres harvested in Dunbulcan Bay are to maintain "class A" status.
Local residents in Clarenbridge are supporting their demand for a permanent buffer zone of up to 400m (0.25 miles) on the eastern, northern and southern shores of the bay to protect their industry and the shoreline environment.
Drinking water in the area has already exceeded E.coli parameters, and the limestone aquifer on which the village is located holds the highest rating for vulnerability to pollution, according to Geological Survey of Ireland assessments. The issue underscores the fact that successive governments have failed to implement policy on coastal-zone management.
Supporters of a group known as the Concerned Clarenbridge Residents have contacted individual Galway councillors to seek their support for the proposed buffer zone.
The group argues that the oyster fisheries are world famous, and provide full and part-time work for 204 members of the oyster co-operative and their families.
This has a significant spin-off for the local economy, it emphasises, and is worth some €5 million annually.
To date, only one of 10 Fianna Fáil councillors and four of 10 Fine Gael councillors have confirmed to the grouping that they "agree with" the buffer zoning, while three Progressive Democrats councillors, three of four Independents, and the Sinn Féin and Labour representatives on the local authority have also said they support it.
Ms Bridgette Brew, spokeswoman for the residents, said that this indicated those councillors who didn't support the oyster industry were in favour of the rezoning.
Mr Higgins says he has contacted the EPA's Office of Environmental Enforcement on the issue to prevent "further environmental disaster in Galway". The agency must make its views known to councillors before the May 28th meeting, he says.
"Irresponsible action" has already destroyed a natural oyster bed at Clarenbridge, he points out.
Earlier this year, EPA director, Dr Mary Kelly, noted that enhanced powers given to the agency under the Protection of the Environment Act for "tackling environmental crime" had been used to good effect.
Lorna Siggins
© 2007 The Irish Times
Tuesday, 1 May 2007
New powers to 'chase down' river polluters
IRRESPONSIBLE local authorities who continue to discharge sewage into rivers and lakes are to be prosecuted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The State's environment watchdog is being handed tough new powers to go after rogue councils whose sewage discharges are continuing to poison tap water and killing off fish, it was revealed yesterday.
For the first time, councils will need a licence if they want to continue discharging sewage effluent. Until now, such pollution licences were confined to industries.
Courts
If the councils are unable to guarantee the discharges will not pollute the rivers and lakes they will be brought before the courts.
Every local authority in the country has, within the past two weeks, been ordered by the EPA to supply the agency with full details of drinking water sources where the treatment process fails to remove the deadly cryptosporidium parasite.
The councils have also been told to explain what plans they have to deal with the problem and what funding is in place.
There is growing concern over the level of tap water contaminated by cryptosporidium parasites from local authority sewage and farm fertilisers.
Aggressive
Dara Lynott, director of the Office of Environmental Enforcement attached to the EPA, warned yesterday that the councils must provide an aggressive schedule for cleaning up their sewage discharges.
"If this does not happen they will face prosecutions," he said at the launch of the EPA's strategy to protect Ireland's environment.
"We will chase them down," added the EPA chief.
According to Mr Lynott yesterday the problem is not confined to public supplies and extended to private group schemes.
He said that 40pc of group water schemes were found to be contaminated by e-coli at least once.
New legislation meant that the operators of such private schemes were liable if they failed to inform householders or the local authority about any contamination problems and would also be liable in the event of a person falling sick from drinking water supplied by the scheme.
Treacy Hogan
Irish Independent
The State's environment watchdog is being handed tough new powers to go after rogue councils whose sewage discharges are continuing to poison tap water and killing off fish, it was revealed yesterday.
For the first time, councils will need a licence if they want to continue discharging sewage effluent. Until now, such pollution licences were confined to industries.
Courts
If the councils are unable to guarantee the discharges will not pollute the rivers and lakes they will be brought before the courts.
Every local authority in the country has, within the past two weeks, been ordered by the EPA to supply the agency with full details of drinking water sources where the treatment process fails to remove the deadly cryptosporidium parasite.
The councils have also been told to explain what plans they have to deal with the problem and what funding is in place.
There is growing concern over the level of tap water contaminated by cryptosporidium parasites from local authority sewage and farm fertilisers.
Aggressive
Dara Lynott, director of the Office of Environmental Enforcement attached to the EPA, warned yesterday that the councils must provide an aggressive schedule for cleaning up their sewage discharges.
"If this does not happen they will face prosecutions," he said at the launch of the EPA's strategy to protect Ireland's environment.
"We will chase them down," added the EPA chief.
According to Mr Lynott yesterday the problem is not confined to public supplies and extended to private group schemes.
He said that 40pc of group water schemes were found to be contaminated by e-coli at least once.
New legislation meant that the operators of such private schemes were liable if they failed to inform householders or the local authority about any contamination problems and would also be liable in the event of a person falling sick from drinking water supplied by the scheme.
Treacy Hogan
Irish Independent
Friday, 27 April 2007
Statoil to discuss Corrib gas project concerns with TDs
Norwegian company Statoil is due to meet a delegation of nine TDs in Dublin
today in relation to concerns about the Corrib gas project. Helge Hatlestad,
senior vice-president of international development and production at Statoil,
will travel to Dublin at the invitation of Mayo TD Dr Jerry Cowley (Ind).
Statoil is a partner with Shell E&P Ireland and Marathon in the project,
currently the subject of an Environmental Protection Agency hearing.
Three Labour Party deputies - party president Michael D Higgins, marine
spokesman Tommy Broughan and Joe Costello - will attend, along with the
Green Party marine spokesman Eamon Ryan, Socialist Party TD Joe Higgins
and Independent TDs Tony Gregory, Catherine Murphy, Finian McGrath and
Dr Cowley.
Dr Cowley, who had planned to bring a cross-party group to Norway late last
year, said the meeting was requested in relation to his concerns about the
project and its impact on his constituents.
Dr Cowley's proposal, supported by NUI Seanad candidate Dr Mark Garavan,
for an independent commission to examine the entire project as a "means to a
permanent solution", would also be discussed, he said. Such a solution would
have to have "community consent", he added.
"The fact that Statoil is exploring two areas adjoining the Corrib field, and that
finds from same may feed into the Corrib gas network, makes it all the more
important to find a solution that is safe and that has the support of the local
north Mayo community," Dr Cowley said yesterday. "Nobody is against
bringing gas ashore if it can be done safely."
Last year, Statoil said it was committed to the project, and halting work on the
terminal was "not an option". However, it was critical of a failure by the original
developer to "communicate with residents in north Mayo".
Terje Nustad, head of the Norwegian energy workers' union, SAFE, has
pledged support for the Shell to Sea campaign, following a visit to north Mayo
last year, and called on Statoil to withdraw its involvement in the project.
SAFE represents 7,000 workers in the Norwegian energy industry, mainly
employed with Statoil, but also some with Shell.
Lorna Siggins
© 2007 The Irish Times
today in relation to concerns about the Corrib gas project. Helge Hatlestad,
senior vice-president of international development and production at Statoil,
will travel to Dublin at the invitation of Mayo TD Dr Jerry Cowley (Ind).
Statoil is a partner with Shell E&P Ireland and Marathon in the project,
currently the subject of an Environmental Protection Agency hearing.
Three Labour Party deputies - party president Michael D Higgins, marine
spokesman Tommy Broughan and Joe Costello - will attend, along with the
Green Party marine spokesman Eamon Ryan, Socialist Party TD Joe Higgins
and Independent TDs Tony Gregory, Catherine Murphy, Finian McGrath and
Dr Cowley.
Dr Cowley, who had planned to bring a cross-party group to Norway late last
year, said the meeting was requested in relation to his concerns about the
project and its impact on his constituents.
Dr Cowley's proposal, supported by NUI Seanad candidate Dr Mark Garavan,
for an independent commission to examine the entire project as a "means to a
permanent solution", would also be discussed, he said. Such a solution would
have to have "community consent", he added.
"The fact that Statoil is exploring two areas adjoining the Corrib field, and that
finds from same may feed into the Corrib gas network, makes it all the more
important to find a solution that is safe and that has the support of the local
north Mayo community," Dr Cowley said yesterday. "Nobody is against
bringing gas ashore if it can be done safely."
Last year, Statoil said it was committed to the project, and halting work on the
terminal was "not an option". However, it was critical of a failure by the original
developer to "communicate with residents in north Mayo".
Terje Nustad, head of the Norwegian energy workers' union, SAFE, has
pledged support for the Shell to Sea campaign, following a visit to north Mayo
last year, and called on Statoil to withdraw its involvement in the project.
SAFE represents 7,000 workers in the Norwegian energy industry, mainly
employed with Statoil, but also some with Shell.
Lorna Siggins
© 2007 The Irish Times
New technology 'not for Corrib'
A new gas-processing technology, used by Shell offshore in Malaysia, was
debated at the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) hearing into the
issuing of an integrated pollution prevention control licence.
An expert witness for Shell E&P Ireland argued that the innovative Twister
technology, which condenses and separates water from hydrocarbons and
natural gas, was not suitable for the remote Corrib field and would not reduce
the overall "footprint" of the project.
Shell senior process engineer, James McBrien, said that Corrib's hostile
conditions, coupled with drilling requirements, made it impractical to use the
technology on an unmanned field.
"Given the gas composition, and when environmental and safety impacts are
considered, a subsea tieback to an onshore gas processing facility is the best
available technique for developing the Corrib field," said Mr McBrien in his
submission.
He was responding to an objection which argued that Shell had a
responsibility to inform the EPA of Twister and as to "why it had not been
considered" for Corrib.
Micheál Ó Seighín, one of the Rossport Five, asked Mr McBrien if he would
accept that this alternative was best for the community.
"I'm not in a position to comment on your valid concerns," said Mr McBrien.
Shell to Sea campaigner John Monaghan asked Corrib project manager Gerry
Costello had Shell ever considered offshore, unmanned platforms at the
concept stage and their positive impact on levels of emissions.
Mr Costello said it would have been discussed but the consideration was not
mentioned in the environmental impact statement, which outlined the
suitability of the onshore option.
He also said that "emissions from a shallow-water platform were considered
to be considerably higher than from an onshore platform".
Aspects of Shell's security of supply of Corrib gas were also challenged.
Áine Ryan
© The Irish Times
debated at the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) hearing into the
issuing of an integrated pollution prevention control licence.
An expert witness for Shell E&P Ireland argued that the innovative Twister
technology, which condenses and separates water from hydrocarbons and
natural gas, was not suitable for the remote Corrib field and would not reduce
the overall "footprint" of the project.
Shell senior process engineer, James McBrien, said that Corrib's hostile
conditions, coupled with drilling requirements, made it impractical to use the
technology on an unmanned field.
"Given the gas composition, and when environmental and safety impacts are
considered, a subsea tieback to an onshore gas processing facility is the best
available technique for developing the Corrib field," said Mr McBrien in his
submission.
He was responding to an objection which argued that Shell had a
responsibility to inform the EPA of Twister and as to "why it had not been
considered" for Corrib.
Micheál Ó Seighín, one of the Rossport Five, asked Mr McBrien if he would
accept that this alternative was best for the community.
"I'm not in a position to comment on your valid concerns," said Mr McBrien.
Shell to Sea campaigner John Monaghan asked Corrib project manager Gerry
Costello had Shell ever considered offshore, unmanned platforms at the
concept stage and their positive impact on levels of emissions.
Mr Costello said it would have been discussed but the consideration was not
mentioned in the environmental impact statement, which outlined the
suitability of the onshore option.
He also said that "emissions from a shallow-water platform were considered
to be considerably higher than from an onshore platform".
Aspects of Shell's security of supply of Corrib gas were also challenged.
Áine Ryan
© The Irish Times
Corrib gas hearing warned on bias
The "demonisation and vilification" of the people of Erris, along with the
continued large presence of gardaí, militated against the Environmental
Protection Agency's oral hearing forming an objective decision, the hearing
was told yesterday.
On the seventh day of the hearing into the issuing of an integrated pollution
prevention licence for the Corrib gas refinery, Seán Harrington - who is
objecting to the licence - suggested to the chairman, Frank Clinton, that since
he was "only human", he was bound to be influenced by such factors.
"In certain sections of the press we have been demonised and called such
pejorative names as aboriginals, pseudo-intellectuals and druids. Last week's
High Court decision [ in which Shell was ordered to pay costs of about €1
million] and the environmental award received by Willie Corduff have totally
exonerated the Rossport Five," said Mr Harrington. He said local people were
intimidated by the large Garda presence in the mornings and by the fact that
two plain-clothes gardaí attended the hearing.
"This is no longer an engineering problem, this is an international human
rights issue," he added.
Mr Clinton said that since, as far as he was aware, the gardaí were clients of
the hotel, he would not wish to deprive them of their breakfasts.
"I will not seek to bring any influence to bear on the Garda presence here," he
said. However, he did say that he had conveyed an earlier complaint to an onduty
garda.
Mr Harrington also asked if Shell could confirm that there was any quarrying
activity at Bellanaboy; if so, had it the necessary consents, and did it intend
depositing the material that it is at present depositing in a Bord na Móna
cutaway bog, 11 kilometres from Bellanaboy, on site. He was alluding to the
site's location in a drinking-water catchment for 10,000 people and the
increased potential for run-off.
In reply, senior counsel for Shell Esmonde Keane said "the development was
proceeding according to the planning permission obtained", which did include
the movement of material around the site. Mr Keane also confirmed no
concrete was being manufactured on site and it was being supplied by a local
supplier.
Mr Keane strongly challenged a contention by Dr Dave Aldridge, a military
systems engineer and an expert witness for the Friends of Rossport, that "the
proposal to store 3,627 tons of methanol at Bellanaboy in close proximity to
houses and release upwards of 1,800 tons per year into the environment
could lead to another Bhopal here in Co Mayo". He argued that Dr Aldridge
had made "an incredible quantum leap" in his assumption that under certain
temperatures and conditions, such as a breach of pipes, the liquid methanol
would transform into a toxic and potentially fatal vapour cloud.
Dr Aldridge said he was referring to "the worst-case scenario". The chairman
said "major accident scenarios" were outside the hearing's parameters.
Áine Ryan
© Irish Times
continued large presence of gardaí, militated against the Environmental
Protection Agency's oral hearing forming an objective decision, the hearing
was told yesterday.
On the seventh day of the hearing into the issuing of an integrated pollution
prevention licence for the Corrib gas refinery, Seán Harrington - who is
objecting to the licence - suggested to the chairman, Frank Clinton, that since
he was "only human", he was bound to be influenced by such factors.
"In certain sections of the press we have been demonised and called such
pejorative names as aboriginals, pseudo-intellectuals and druids. Last week's
High Court decision [ in which Shell was ordered to pay costs of about €1
million] and the environmental award received by Willie Corduff have totally
exonerated the Rossport Five," said Mr Harrington. He said local people were
intimidated by the large Garda presence in the mornings and by the fact that
two plain-clothes gardaí attended the hearing.
"This is no longer an engineering problem, this is an international human
rights issue," he added.
Mr Clinton said that since, as far as he was aware, the gardaí were clients of
the hotel, he would not wish to deprive them of their breakfasts.
"I will not seek to bring any influence to bear on the Garda presence here," he
said. However, he did say that he had conveyed an earlier complaint to an onduty
garda.
Mr Harrington also asked if Shell could confirm that there was any quarrying
activity at Bellanaboy; if so, had it the necessary consents, and did it intend
depositing the material that it is at present depositing in a Bord na Móna
cutaway bog, 11 kilometres from Bellanaboy, on site. He was alluding to the
site's location in a drinking-water catchment for 10,000 people and the
increased potential for run-off.
In reply, senior counsel for Shell Esmonde Keane said "the development was
proceeding according to the planning permission obtained", which did include
the movement of material around the site. Mr Keane also confirmed no
concrete was being manufactured on site and it was being supplied by a local
supplier.
Mr Keane strongly challenged a contention by Dr Dave Aldridge, a military
systems engineer and an expert witness for the Friends of Rossport, that "the
proposal to store 3,627 tons of methanol at Bellanaboy in close proximity to
houses and release upwards of 1,800 tons per year into the environment
could lead to another Bhopal here in Co Mayo". He argued that Dr Aldridge
had made "an incredible quantum leap" in his assumption that under certain
temperatures and conditions, such as a breach of pipes, the liquid methanol
would transform into a toxic and potentially fatal vapour cloud.
Dr Aldridge said he was referring to "the worst-case scenario". The chairman
said "major accident scenarios" were outside the hearing's parameters.
Áine Ryan
© Irish Times
Monday, 23 April 2007
EPA Hearing: Shell Mayo Terminal
Blame for the Corrib gas controversy was firmly laid on the doorstep of Minister for the Marine Noel Dempsey and former minister Frank Fahey by an An Taisce member at thee Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) oral hearing into the issuing of an integrated pollution prevention licence (IPPC).
Leo Corcoran, a former Bord Gáis engineer, argued that the issuing of "dodgy consents" was the biggest mistake, and that the manner in which the project has been handled would never have been countenanced by Bord Gáis.
His claim that Shell was in breach of codes of practice adhered to throughout Europe was vigorously challenged by Shell's senior counsel, Esmonde Keane, who was accused by appellant Ed Moran of "using and abusing" court-room techniques in his cross-examination.
Mr Corcoran said there were significant differences between the Bellanaboy refinery and one at St Fergus, in Scotland, which was used as an evaluation basis by the EPA inspector who granted the conditional IPPC licence last January. The St Fergus refinery is located exactly on the coastline, has a short production pipe, is not adjacent to a water catchment area and is located in a specially designated area for oil development, he said.
He said the fact that a Shell expert witness, Dr Nigel Peters, a health, safety and environment consultant with the company, had refused to answer a key question was telling. Mr Corcoran had asked whether it would be acceptable
practice in Scotland to have instead located St Fergus adjacent to the nearby town of Peterhead, which, like Bellanaboy, is within a catchment area of drinking water for 10,000 people.
In his submission, Leo Corcoran said the Scottish Environment Protection Authority - "an organisation with considerable experience in licensing such facilities"- agreed the terminal should not be located within a drinking water catchment.
He quoted its head of water policy, Martin Marsden: "When consulted on the location of major industrial facilities, SEPA would normally recommend against placing such facilities at locations which could affect public drinking water."
Concerns about excessive aluminium levels in Carrowmore lake, the main drinking water supply for the Erris area, have been ongoing.
John Monaghan, a Shell to Sea campaigner, asked the hearing's chairman, Frank Clinton, if he was aware the company was regularly breaching its own limits on the site since October 2005.
Cross-examining Dr Peters, Micheál Ó Seighin revealed the company may have used a questionable statistic to gauge run-off impact from extreme rainfall within a 24-hour period.
"How could you base your figures on a catastrophic event [ the Pollathomas landslide in September 2003] from the Belmullet weather station. There was no rain in Belmullet that day; it was a spatially limited catastrophe," said Mr Ó Seighin. He added the statistic used was from Inver national school, which was not monitored properly.
He observed that while experts concerned themselves with possible failure, a community concerned itself with possible consequences.
Bríd McGarry, a landowner involved in Wednesday's High Court proceedings, claimed the vacating of the compulsory acquisition orders for the original pipeline route may have a legal bearing on the IPPC, since there is a conduit pipe which will now take a new route into the refinery.
Suggestions that Shell E&P Ireland held a series of formal consultation meetings with residents living near the Bellanaboy site regarding the decision to cold-vent the gas rather than flare it have been described as an "insult to the intelligence of the people".
Agnes McLaverty, of Shell, said there had been a series of public exhibitions in Rossport, Belmullet, Ballina and other areas where the issue of cold-venting and flaring was raised.
She was responding to the chairman of the hearing, Frank Clinton, who asked Shell representatives to provide detailed documentation of a consultation process it said it carried out with Mayo County Council and the community. She said they chose cold-venting to ease residents' concerns over the visual impact.
Cold-venting of gas, usually methane, entails its release directly into the environment without being burned.
However, appellants said that cold-venting was rarely mentioned at meetings and the majority of the people did not know what it was. One appellant, Anthony Irwin, claimed that the documentation cited by Shell as proof that it had conducted a consultation process was an "insult to the intelligence of the people". In his opinion, the main document issued for planning approval was incomplete and flawed.
The hearing resumes on Tuesday.
Áine Ryan, Anton McNulty & Lorna Siggins [Edited]
© 2007 The Irish Times
Leo Corcoran, a former Bord Gáis engineer, argued that the issuing of "dodgy consents" was the biggest mistake, and that the manner in which the project has been handled would never have been countenanced by Bord Gáis.
His claim that Shell was in breach of codes of practice adhered to throughout Europe was vigorously challenged by Shell's senior counsel, Esmonde Keane, who was accused by appellant Ed Moran of "using and abusing" court-room techniques in his cross-examination.
Mr Corcoran said there were significant differences between the Bellanaboy refinery and one at St Fergus, in Scotland, which was used as an evaluation basis by the EPA inspector who granted the conditional IPPC licence last January. The St Fergus refinery is located exactly on the coastline, has a short production pipe, is not adjacent to a water catchment area and is located in a specially designated area for oil development, he said.
He said the fact that a Shell expert witness, Dr Nigel Peters, a health, safety and environment consultant with the company, had refused to answer a key question was telling. Mr Corcoran had asked whether it would be acceptable
practice in Scotland to have instead located St Fergus adjacent to the nearby town of Peterhead, which, like Bellanaboy, is within a catchment area of drinking water for 10,000 people.
In his submission, Leo Corcoran said the Scottish Environment Protection Authority - "an organisation with considerable experience in licensing such facilities"- agreed the terminal should not be located within a drinking water catchment.
He quoted its head of water policy, Martin Marsden: "When consulted on the location of major industrial facilities, SEPA would normally recommend against placing such facilities at locations which could affect public drinking water."
Concerns about excessive aluminium levels in Carrowmore lake, the main drinking water supply for the Erris area, have been ongoing.
John Monaghan, a Shell to Sea campaigner, asked the hearing's chairman, Frank Clinton, if he was aware the company was regularly breaching its own limits on the site since October 2005.
Cross-examining Dr Peters, Micheál Ó Seighin revealed the company may have used a questionable statistic to gauge run-off impact from extreme rainfall within a 24-hour period.
"How could you base your figures on a catastrophic event [ the Pollathomas landslide in September 2003] from the Belmullet weather station. There was no rain in Belmullet that day; it was a spatially limited catastrophe," said Mr Ó Seighin. He added the statistic used was from Inver national school, which was not monitored properly.
He observed that while experts concerned themselves with possible failure, a community concerned itself with possible consequences.
Bríd McGarry, a landowner involved in Wednesday's High Court proceedings, claimed the vacating of the compulsory acquisition orders for the original pipeline route may have a legal bearing on the IPPC, since there is a conduit pipe which will now take a new route into the refinery.
Suggestions that Shell E&P Ireland held a series of formal consultation meetings with residents living near the Bellanaboy site regarding the decision to cold-vent the gas rather than flare it have been described as an "insult to the intelligence of the people".
Agnes McLaverty, of Shell, said there had been a series of public exhibitions in Rossport, Belmullet, Ballina and other areas where the issue of cold-venting and flaring was raised.
She was responding to the chairman of the hearing, Frank Clinton, who asked Shell representatives to provide detailed documentation of a consultation process it said it carried out with Mayo County Council and the community. She said they chose cold-venting to ease residents' concerns over the visual impact.
Cold-venting of gas, usually methane, entails its release directly into the environment without being burned.
However, appellants said that cold-venting was rarely mentioned at meetings and the majority of the people did not know what it was. One appellant, Anthony Irwin, claimed that the documentation cited by Shell as proof that it had conducted a consultation process was an "insult to the intelligence of the people". In his opinion, the main document issued for planning approval was incomplete and flawed.
The hearing resumes on Tuesday.
Áine Ryan, Anton McNulty & Lorna Siggins [Edited]
© 2007 The Irish Times
Monday, 26 March 2007
EPA sets date for Corrib terminal oral hearing
The Environmental Protection Agency's oral hearing into its licensing of the Corrib gas terminal has been set for April 16th.
The hearing will be held by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) staff in the Broadhaven Bay Hotel, Belmullet, following 12 submissions in relation to its preliminary licensing of the project.
Corrib's lead developer, Shell E&P Ireland, An Taisce, local priest Fr Michael Nallen, the Erris Inshore Fishermen's Association and individual members of the Shell to Sea campaign were among the 12 appellants, following the Environment Protection Agency's issuing of preliminary integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC) approval in January this year.
The IPPC licence for the refinery is one of a number of consents and procedures handled by different State agencies in relation to the €900 million project. It addresses emissions and the environmental management of the facility.
The EPA's preliminary approval states it is "satisfied that emissions from the refinery, when operated in accordance with the conditions of the proposed licence, will not adversely affect human health or the environment and will meet all relevant national and EU standards". To date, the EPA has not overturned an interim decision of this nature.
In a related development, the North-Western Regional Fisheries Board expects that it will be a fortnight before it has results back from tests taken near the Bellanaboy terminal on Thursday last.
A "tar-like" run-off into a stream feeding the Bellanaboy river - which in turn runs into Carrowmore lake - was reported to Mayo County Council by residents late last week, and up to 30 people occupied the terminal site for an hour on Thursday to protest over continuing concerns about water quality.
Although Shell E&P Ireland has described the report as "spurious", the fisheries board has said it is investigating the situation as the affected stream runs into Bellanaboy river and Carrowmore lake.
Carrowmore lake supplies drinking water to 10,000 people, and the proximity of the terminal to it is the basis for An Taisce's objection to the EPA's integrated pollution prevention and control licence. Mayo County Council was unavailable for comment on the report.
Lorna Siggins
© 2007 The Irish Times
The hearing will be held by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) staff in the Broadhaven Bay Hotel, Belmullet, following 12 submissions in relation to its preliminary licensing of the project.
Corrib's lead developer, Shell E&P Ireland, An Taisce, local priest Fr Michael Nallen, the Erris Inshore Fishermen's Association and individual members of the Shell to Sea campaign were among the 12 appellants, following the Environment Protection Agency's issuing of preliminary integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC) approval in January this year.
The IPPC licence for the refinery is one of a number of consents and procedures handled by different State agencies in relation to the €900 million project. It addresses emissions and the environmental management of the facility.
The EPA's preliminary approval states it is "satisfied that emissions from the refinery, when operated in accordance with the conditions of the proposed licence, will not adversely affect human health or the environment and will meet all relevant national and EU standards". To date, the EPA has not overturned an interim decision of this nature.
In a related development, the North-Western Regional Fisheries Board expects that it will be a fortnight before it has results back from tests taken near the Bellanaboy terminal on Thursday last.
A "tar-like" run-off into a stream feeding the Bellanaboy river - which in turn runs into Carrowmore lake - was reported to Mayo County Council by residents late last week, and up to 30 people occupied the terminal site for an hour on Thursday to protest over continuing concerns about water quality.
Although Shell E&P Ireland has described the report as "spurious", the fisheries board has said it is investigating the situation as the affected stream runs into Bellanaboy river and Carrowmore lake.
Carrowmore lake supplies drinking water to 10,000 people, and the proximity of the terminal to it is the basis for An Taisce's objection to the EPA's integrated pollution prevention and control licence. Mayo County Council was unavailable for comment on the report.
Lorna Siggins
© 2007 The Irish Times
Tuesday, 13 March 2007
Sewage entering rivers from treatment facilities - report
Raw sewage is being pumped into many rivers and streams around the State because treatment facilities are unable to cope with the high levels of development taking place, a new report has warned.
The report, by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), found that, at the end of 2005, only one in five waste treatment plants in small towns was treating sewage to adequate standards. Less than 40 per cent of medium-sized facilities complied with minimum standards.
This is despite investment in water facilities running into billions of euro in the past decade.
Yesterday the EPA said it believed many waste water treatment plants were under increasing pressure from the development that has taken place throughout the State in recent years. It said the operation management of such plants was "proving to be a significant difficulty for many local authorities".
EPA programme manager Dr Matt Crowe said councils needed to "fast-track planned improvement works and enhanced operational controls to protect the quality of our waters".
"While the EPA acknowledge the scale of work being carried out by local authorities, we are disappointed that the necessary improvements are not happening at a fast enough pace. This is an area that needs attention."
Dr Crowe said the pressure on plants had led to the use of rain-water drains to "discharge untreated and unscreened sewage and industrial waste water into receiving waters".
"The EPA is concerned about this development and wants to see it addressed by local authorities as a priority," he added.
More than 80 per cent of waste water went through secondary treatment, compared to 67 per cent in 2003, the report found.
However, it also said there were inadequate treatment facilities in 30 large towns, cities and suburbs. Ten of these were required by law to have had secondary treatment facilities by December 2000, but this had not happened. These include parts of Howth, Baldoyle and Portmarnock in Dublin, Killybegs in Donegal, Sligo town, Tramore and Waterford city.
It also said the monitoring of discharges from treatment plants was "in need of improvement".
Liam Reid
© 2007 The Irish Times
The report, by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), found that, at the end of 2005, only one in five waste treatment plants in small towns was treating sewage to adequate standards. Less than 40 per cent of medium-sized facilities complied with minimum standards.
This is despite investment in water facilities running into billions of euro in the past decade.
Yesterday the EPA said it believed many waste water treatment plants were under increasing pressure from the development that has taken place throughout the State in recent years. It said the operation management of such plants was "proving to be a significant difficulty for many local authorities".
EPA programme manager Dr Matt Crowe said councils needed to "fast-track planned improvement works and enhanced operational controls to protect the quality of our waters".
"While the EPA acknowledge the scale of work being carried out by local authorities, we are disappointed that the necessary improvements are not happening at a fast enough pace. This is an area that needs attention."
Dr Crowe said the pressure on plants had led to the use of rain-water drains to "discharge untreated and unscreened sewage and industrial waste water into receiving waters".
"The EPA is concerned about this development and wants to see it addressed by local authorities as a priority," he added.
More than 80 per cent of waste water went through secondary treatment, compared to 67 per cent in 2003, the report found.
However, it also said there were inadequate treatment facilities in 30 large towns, cities and suburbs. Ten of these were required by law to have had secondary treatment facilities by December 2000, but this had not happened. These include parts of Howth, Baldoyle and Portmarnock in Dublin, Killybegs in Donegal, Sligo town, Tramore and Waterford city.
It also said the monitoring of discharges from treatment plants was "in need of improvement".
Liam Reid
© 2007 The Irish Times
EPA to hold hearing into Corrib licence
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has agreed to hold an oral hearing into the licensing of the Corrib gas refinery in north Mayo.
Objectors to the preliminary licensing approval have been informed of the EPA's decision, but a date has yet to be set for the hearing.
The EPA issued a preliminary integrated pollution prevention and control (IPCC) approval last January. Among the 12 appellants to the hearing are Corrib's lead developer, Shell E&P Ireland, An Taisce, local priest Fr Michael Nallen, the Erris Inshore Fishermen's Association, and members of the Shell to Sea campaign.
The IPCC licence for the refinery is one of a number of consents handled by various State agencies in relation to the €900 million project. It addresses emissions and the environmental management of the facility.
The EPA's preliminary approval states that it is "satisfied that emissions from the refinery, when operated in accordance with the conditions of the proposed licence, will not adversely affect human health or the environment and will meet all relevant national and EU standards". To date, the EPA has not overturned such an interim decision.
Shell had objected to the wording in eight of some 85 conditions attached. An Taisce's objection recommends that the EPA board refuse a final licence for seven reasons, including the failure of the Bellanaboy location to comply with international codes of practice because of its proximity to Carrowmore Lake, which supplies 10,000 people.
Shell E&P Ireland welcomed the EPA's oral hearing decision and said it would provide an opportunity for people to "air their genuine concerns at an independent and transparent forum".
Mayo Independent TD Dr Jerry Cowley and Seanad candidate for the NUI constituency Dr Mark Garavan said yesterday that while they welcomed the EPA's move, they believed a far more comprehensive "root-and-branch" review was required.
They reiterated their call to set up an independent commission to determine the optimum development model for the project.
"We are concerned that Shell's insistence on proceeding with construction of the refinery prior to an agreement regarding a production pipeline and prior to EPA approval will deepen the dispute," they said.
In a separate development, Shell confirmed yesterday that a "technical issue" had arisen in relation to variations in diameter of concrete piles installed at the terminal site to support roadways. However, all piles installed to date had passed integrity tests and it said it had no "health and safety issue" relating to the situation.
Lorna Siggins
© 2007 The Irish Times
Objectors to the preliminary licensing approval have been informed of the EPA's decision, but a date has yet to be set for the hearing.
The EPA issued a preliminary integrated pollution prevention and control (IPCC) approval last January. Among the 12 appellants to the hearing are Corrib's lead developer, Shell E&P Ireland, An Taisce, local priest Fr Michael Nallen, the Erris Inshore Fishermen's Association, and members of the Shell to Sea campaign.
The IPCC licence for the refinery is one of a number of consents handled by various State agencies in relation to the €900 million project. It addresses emissions and the environmental management of the facility.
The EPA's preliminary approval states that it is "satisfied that emissions from the refinery, when operated in accordance with the conditions of the proposed licence, will not adversely affect human health or the environment and will meet all relevant national and EU standards". To date, the EPA has not overturned such an interim decision.
Shell had objected to the wording in eight of some 85 conditions attached. An Taisce's objection recommends that the EPA board refuse a final licence for seven reasons, including the failure of the Bellanaboy location to comply with international codes of practice because of its proximity to Carrowmore Lake, which supplies 10,000 people.
Shell E&P Ireland welcomed the EPA's oral hearing decision and said it would provide an opportunity for people to "air their genuine concerns at an independent and transparent forum".
Mayo Independent TD Dr Jerry Cowley and Seanad candidate for the NUI constituency Dr Mark Garavan said yesterday that while they welcomed the EPA's move, they believed a far more comprehensive "root-and-branch" review was required.
They reiterated their call to set up an independent commission to determine the optimum development model for the project.
"We are concerned that Shell's insistence on proceeding with construction of the refinery prior to an agreement regarding a production pipeline and prior to EPA approval will deepen the dispute," they said.
In a separate development, Shell confirmed yesterday that a "technical issue" had arisen in relation to variations in diameter of concrete piles installed at the terminal site to support roadways. However, all piles installed to date had passed integrity tests and it said it had no "health and safety issue" relating to the situation.
Lorna Siggins
© 2007 The Irish Times
Saturday, 10 March 2007
Board hearing into Meath incinerator
An oral hearing into plans for a €100 million incinerator in Co Meath was "tainted" and Bord Pleanála may even have compromised a related Supreme Court case, it was alleged at the opening of the hearing into the project yesterday.
Speaking in Drogheda at the start of a Bord Pleanála inquiry into Indaver Ireland's plans for an incinerator with capacity to take 200,000 tonnes of waste per year, appellant Stephen Ward said there was concern that the board may be restricting the evidence brought by opponents of the plan.
He was told by hearing inspector Mary Cunneen that there would be no restriction on evidence produced.
Mr Ward referred specifically to a letter from the board issued on February 26th last, in which appellants were advised it would be helpful if their testimony did not overly concentrate on material already given to the board in respect of a previously approved smaller incinerator with a capacity of 150,000 tonnes.
The letter produced by Mr Ward read: "Finally, as planning permission and a waste licence have already been granted in respect of a similar development at the site [planning reference numbers] it would be helpful to conduct the hearing, were the parties to focus on issues specifically pertaining to the currently proposed development including any material changes in circumstances which have occurred in the interim period."
Mr Ward insisted the letter raised very serious concerns about the bringing of evidence and the format of the inquiry. He said the previously proposed incinerator had not been approved, as a case against it was still with the
Supreme Court. And he suggested the letter "has prejudiced that [Supreme Court] hearing".
He told Ms Cunneen, "you yourself referred to a previous application", which he said was inappropriate as what was before yesterday's hearing was a completely new application, not a variation of a previous one.
"An Bord Pleanála have prejudiced to a certain degree the Supreme Court outcome," he told the inquiry.
In response, Ms Cunneen said that while her "aim is to ask parties to focus on those aspects of the development which differ" from the previously proposed development, she had no intention of restricting or limiting the evidence brought by the parties.
Concern, however, was also expressed by a number of politicians present including the Louth TDs Arthur Morgan of Sinn Féin and Fine Gael environment spokesman Fergus O'Dowd. Both men asked about the site selection process, as the evidence would be the same in both incinerator applications but there would be a difference in site selection, particularly in assessing traffic volumes, for a large facility and that for a smaller facility.
Trevor Sargent told the hearing that the incinerator would undermine the regional waste-management plan for the northeast,
Mr Sargent was one of a number of politicians, including Meath councillor Dominic Hannigan and Louth councillor Gerald Nash, who gave evidence for opponents of the project, No Incineration Alliance and Louth People Against Incineration.
Mr Sargent said an incinerator would undermine the principle of regional self-reliance on waste-management facilities and would ignore the need to reduce levels of waste. "This is understandable as incinerators require more rather than less waste," he said.
He also maintained the proposals put forward by Indaver Ireland for a 200,000-tonne capacity waste-to-energy plant "would become a major greenhouse gas emitter if permission is granted". The plant would damage the marketability of local food "and would destroy any prospect of reaching the ultimate goal of zero waste".
Mr Hannigan said locating an incinerator above a regionally important aquifer would threaten water supplies to centres of population along the east coast. He was "deeply concerned" about a local health authority warning that the aquifer was susceptible to ground-water pollution. In the event of a fire or explosion, he said, the aquifer could be polluted by waste, waste waters or ash.
An assertion from Mr Nash that Meath County Council had not consulted Louth county or Drogheda town councils was rejected by John Gallagher SC
for Meath County Council. Mr Gallagher said his instructions were that written invitations to comment on the incinerator project had been sent to both councils, but no reply had been received from either body.
Earlier, at the start of yesterday's hearings, an application from the No Incineration Alliance and the Meath People Against Incineration to adjourn was deferred by planning inspector Mary Cunneen. Spokesman for Louth People Against Incineration Ollan Herr had asked for the adjournment because a key witness, Prof Vyvyan Howard of the centre of molecular bioscience at the University of Ulster, was unable to attend due to illness. He could be available on April 2nd and 3rd.
Mr Herr also said a further adjournment after April might be required until such a time as the State's implementation plan for the Stockholm Convention on the reduction and possible elimination of dioxins and furans was published.
Ms Cunneen said the application raised many practical issues of the availability of experts for cross-examination and no arrangement had been made to extend the oral hearing beyond this week's current schedule.
There was also the question of whether the Government's proposals for the implementation of the Stockholm Convention would be available in the six-week timeframe for her report to An Bord Pleanála.
In the circumstances she intended to go ahead with the hearing during which Prof Howard's evidence might be read into the record.
In deferring the matter to the board, Ms Cunneen assured Mr Herr it would not close the inquiry until it was satisfied it had all the relevant information it required.
A range of experts for Indaver Ireland told the hearing the plant was designed to comply with Irish, EU and international best practice. Emissions data from the proposed incinerator would be available "in real time" on the internet to demonstrate this compliance and a permanent community liaison group would be set up.
Stephen Hickey of ARC Consultants said the topography of the land meant that, in a line of sight from the top of the tumulus at Dowth, some three metres of the top of the 65-metre incinerator stack should be visible. However, because of the distance of 5.45km and the colouring of the stack, it would be imperceptible.
Mr Hickey added that neither the plant nor the stack would be visible from the archaeological complex of Newgrange, the site of the Battle of the Boyne, nor anywhere else within the Boyne Valley.
Addressing the likely traffic impact of the plant, Gareth Mitchell of consulting engineers Roughan & O'Donovan said he had examined the environmental impact assessment, visited the site and carried out internationally
standardised computer analysis of the proposed arrangements, and was satisfied. "In my opinion the proposed facility will not result in any significant impacts on the surrounding road network," he said.
Conor Jones, a chemical engineer who is engineering manager with Indaver Ireland, told the hearing that concern had been expressed that should the plant be limited in its electricity supply to the national grid, the plant would not be able to operate at capacity. This was not the case, he said, as the turbines could simply be bypassed. Mr Jones described how ash would be taken away by sealed lorries reversing into the plant to prevent the ash escaping. He also described how flue gases would be cleaned before being discharged to the atmosphere.
Patricia McGrath, compliance manager with the company, said the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets limits for emissions and the design of the facility would be within these parameters. She said these would be constantly monitored by the EPA, with results displayed on the internet.
Tim O'Brien
© 2007 The Irish Times
Speaking in Drogheda at the start of a Bord Pleanála inquiry into Indaver Ireland's plans for an incinerator with capacity to take 200,000 tonnes of waste per year, appellant Stephen Ward said there was concern that the board may be restricting the evidence brought by opponents of the plan.
He was told by hearing inspector Mary Cunneen that there would be no restriction on evidence produced.
Mr Ward referred specifically to a letter from the board issued on February 26th last, in which appellants were advised it would be helpful if their testimony did not overly concentrate on material already given to the board in respect of a previously approved smaller incinerator with a capacity of 150,000 tonnes.
The letter produced by Mr Ward read: "Finally, as planning permission and a waste licence have already been granted in respect of a similar development at the site [planning reference numbers] it would be helpful to conduct the hearing, were the parties to focus on issues specifically pertaining to the currently proposed development including any material changes in circumstances which have occurred in the interim period."
Mr Ward insisted the letter raised very serious concerns about the bringing of evidence and the format of the inquiry. He said the previously proposed incinerator had not been approved, as a case against it was still with the
Supreme Court. And he suggested the letter "has prejudiced that [Supreme Court] hearing".
He told Ms Cunneen, "you yourself referred to a previous application", which he said was inappropriate as what was before yesterday's hearing was a completely new application, not a variation of a previous one.
"An Bord Pleanála have prejudiced to a certain degree the Supreme Court outcome," he told the inquiry.
In response, Ms Cunneen said that while her "aim is to ask parties to focus on those aspects of the development which differ" from the previously proposed development, she had no intention of restricting or limiting the evidence brought by the parties.
Concern, however, was also expressed by a number of politicians present including the Louth TDs Arthur Morgan of Sinn Féin and Fine Gael environment spokesman Fergus O'Dowd. Both men asked about the site selection process, as the evidence would be the same in both incinerator applications but there would be a difference in site selection, particularly in assessing traffic volumes, for a large facility and that for a smaller facility.
Trevor Sargent told the hearing that the incinerator would undermine the regional waste-management plan for the northeast,
Mr Sargent was one of a number of politicians, including Meath councillor Dominic Hannigan and Louth councillor Gerald Nash, who gave evidence for opponents of the project, No Incineration Alliance and Louth People Against Incineration.
Mr Sargent said an incinerator would undermine the principle of regional self-reliance on waste-management facilities and would ignore the need to reduce levels of waste. "This is understandable as incinerators require more rather than less waste," he said.
He also maintained the proposals put forward by Indaver Ireland for a 200,000-tonne capacity waste-to-energy plant "would become a major greenhouse gas emitter if permission is granted". The plant would damage the marketability of local food "and would destroy any prospect of reaching the ultimate goal of zero waste".
Mr Hannigan said locating an incinerator above a regionally important aquifer would threaten water supplies to centres of population along the east coast. He was "deeply concerned" about a local health authority warning that the aquifer was susceptible to ground-water pollution. In the event of a fire or explosion, he said, the aquifer could be polluted by waste, waste waters or ash.
An assertion from Mr Nash that Meath County Council had not consulted Louth county or Drogheda town councils was rejected by John Gallagher SC
for Meath County Council. Mr Gallagher said his instructions were that written invitations to comment on the incinerator project had been sent to both councils, but no reply had been received from either body.
Earlier, at the start of yesterday's hearings, an application from the No Incineration Alliance and the Meath People Against Incineration to adjourn was deferred by planning inspector Mary Cunneen. Spokesman for Louth People Against Incineration Ollan Herr had asked for the adjournment because a key witness, Prof Vyvyan Howard of the centre of molecular bioscience at the University of Ulster, was unable to attend due to illness. He could be available on April 2nd and 3rd.
Mr Herr also said a further adjournment after April might be required until such a time as the State's implementation plan for the Stockholm Convention on the reduction and possible elimination of dioxins and furans was published.
Ms Cunneen said the application raised many practical issues of the availability of experts for cross-examination and no arrangement had been made to extend the oral hearing beyond this week's current schedule.
There was also the question of whether the Government's proposals for the implementation of the Stockholm Convention would be available in the six-week timeframe for her report to An Bord Pleanála.
In the circumstances she intended to go ahead with the hearing during which Prof Howard's evidence might be read into the record.
In deferring the matter to the board, Ms Cunneen assured Mr Herr it would not close the inquiry until it was satisfied it had all the relevant information it required.
A range of experts for Indaver Ireland told the hearing the plant was designed to comply with Irish, EU and international best practice. Emissions data from the proposed incinerator would be available "in real time" on the internet to demonstrate this compliance and a permanent community liaison group would be set up.
Stephen Hickey of ARC Consultants said the topography of the land meant that, in a line of sight from the top of the tumulus at Dowth, some three metres of the top of the 65-metre incinerator stack should be visible. However, because of the distance of 5.45km and the colouring of the stack, it would be imperceptible.
Mr Hickey added that neither the plant nor the stack would be visible from the archaeological complex of Newgrange, the site of the Battle of the Boyne, nor anywhere else within the Boyne Valley.
Addressing the likely traffic impact of the plant, Gareth Mitchell of consulting engineers Roughan & O'Donovan said he had examined the environmental impact assessment, visited the site and carried out internationally
standardised computer analysis of the proposed arrangements, and was satisfied. "In my opinion the proposed facility will not result in any significant impacts on the surrounding road network," he said.
Conor Jones, a chemical engineer who is engineering manager with Indaver Ireland, told the hearing that concern had been expressed that should the plant be limited in its electricity supply to the national grid, the plant would not be able to operate at capacity. This was not the case, he said, as the turbines could simply be bypassed. Mr Jones described how ash would be taken away by sealed lorries reversing into the plant to prevent the ash escaping. He also described how flue gases would be cleaned before being discharged to the atmosphere.
Patricia McGrath, compliance manager with the company, said the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets limits for emissions and the design of the facility would be within these parameters. She said these would be constantly monitored by the EPA, with results displayed on the internet.
Tim O'Brien
© 2007 The Irish Times
Monday, 26 February 2007
140% rise in Irish transport gas emissions
GREENHOUSE gas emissions from transport in Ireland jumped 140% in 14 years, the second highest in the EU where the average increase was 25%.
The European Environmental Agency has warned that this massive increase will make it very difficult for Europe to meet its Kyoto commitments to reduce CO2 by an average of 8% below 1990 levels by 2012.
The report comes ahead of the EU summit in Brussels next week when the Taoiseach and other EU leaders are expected to pledge to reduce emissions by a further 20% — 30% by 2020.
Ireland blames the country’s rapid economic growth for the increase in emissions over the past decade that saw the number of car owners grow dramatically.
Transport is now responsible for a fifth of all greenhouse gas emissions in the EU 15 with road transport emitting most of this. But emissions from aviation are growing even faster and increased by 86% between 1990 and 2004.
Luxembourg topped Europe’s transport emissions league with an increase over the 14 years of 156% followed by Ireland with 140%, said the Copenhagen-based agency.
The increase was harshly criticised by the Green party. Transport spokesperson Eamon Ryan said: “As long as the urban sprawl goes unchecked, as long as people are forced to use private transport to travel to basic community facilities, and long as investment in transport remains so disproportionately in favour of roads, it is inevitable that our emissions will continue to rise”.
Many other countries have managed to cut their emissions but Ireland’s level has increased to 28% over the 1990 level. It promised to reduce it to 13% over the 1990 level by 2012.
The report said that all countries would find it difficult to achieve its targets and that new measures need to be taken.
The legislation to force car manufacturers to make cleaner cars announced by the EU earlier this month may not be enough, the European Environment Agency head, Jacqueline McGlade warned.
Ann Cahill
© Irish Examiner
The European Environmental Agency has warned that this massive increase will make it very difficult for Europe to meet its Kyoto commitments to reduce CO2 by an average of 8% below 1990 levels by 2012.
The report comes ahead of the EU summit in Brussels next week when the Taoiseach and other EU leaders are expected to pledge to reduce emissions by a further 20% — 30% by 2020.
Ireland blames the country’s rapid economic growth for the increase in emissions over the past decade that saw the number of car owners grow dramatically.
Transport is now responsible for a fifth of all greenhouse gas emissions in the EU 15 with road transport emitting most of this. But emissions from aviation are growing even faster and increased by 86% between 1990 and 2004.
Luxembourg topped Europe’s transport emissions league with an increase over the 14 years of 156% followed by Ireland with 140%, said the Copenhagen-based agency.
The increase was harshly criticised by the Green party. Transport spokesperson Eamon Ryan said: “As long as the urban sprawl goes unchecked, as long as people are forced to use private transport to travel to basic community facilities, and long as investment in transport remains so disproportionately in favour of roads, it is inevitable that our emissions will continue to rise”.
Many other countries have managed to cut their emissions but Ireland’s level has increased to 28% over the 1990 level. It promised to reduce it to 13% over the 1990 level by 2012.
The report said that all countries would find it difficult to achieve its targets and that new measures need to be taken.
The legislation to force car manufacturers to make cleaner cars announced by the EU earlier this month may not be enough, the European Environment Agency head, Jacqueline McGlade warned.
Ann Cahill
© Irish Examiner
Agency decisions signal end to 'shameful illegal dumping'
Decisions made by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last year requiring the removal of all polluting material from two sites in Co Wicklow "should bring to a close a shameful episode of illegal dumping in Ireland", according to its director general.
Dr Mary Kelly said the EPA's decisions in relation to illegal dumps on lands owned by Roadstone Dublin Ltd, near Blessington, and Brownfield
Restoration Ltd, at Whitestown, "should send a clear message to those involved in illegal waste disposal practices".
In the agency's annual highlights report for 2006, issued yesterday, she said enhanced powers given to the EPA under the Protection of the Environment Act for "tackling environmental crime" had been used to good effect by its Office of Environmental Enforcement.
Three licensees were convicted in the Circuit Court and a further 15 were prosecuted in the District Courts. "Those convicted have committed substantial investments - up to €4 million in some cases - to carry out environmental improvements at their facilities."
In December, the High Court ruled in favour of the EPA in two judicial review cases. The cases related to decisions to grant waste licences for landfills at Kilcullen, Co Kildare, and Grangemockler, Co Tipperary. Judgment in both cases upheld the agency's decisions.
The EPA also issued two legally-binding directions during 2006 requiring local authorities to take immediate action in areas where an imminent risk of significant environmental pollution had been identified. Both issues were resolved satisfactorily, Dr Kelly said.
A total of 173 investigations were carried out on foot of 499 complaints made to the EPA about activities that were the responsibility of local authorities. The majority of these complaints related to either waste management or water management issues.
As a result of these investigations, seven directions were issued to Louth, Leitrim, Kildare, Sligo, Roscommon, Galway and Kilkenny county councils, while 92 advice and recommendation notices on environmental complaints were issued to other local authorities.
Frank McDonald
© 2007 The Irish Times
Dr Mary Kelly said the EPA's decisions in relation to illegal dumps on lands owned by Roadstone Dublin Ltd, near Blessington, and Brownfield
Restoration Ltd, at Whitestown, "should send a clear message to those involved in illegal waste disposal practices".
In the agency's annual highlights report for 2006, issued yesterday, she said enhanced powers given to the EPA under the Protection of the Environment Act for "tackling environmental crime" had been used to good effect by its Office of Environmental Enforcement.
Three licensees were convicted in the Circuit Court and a further 15 were prosecuted in the District Courts. "Those convicted have committed substantial investments - up to €4 million in some cases - to carry out environmental improvements at their facilities."
In December, the High Court ruled in favour of the EPA in two judicial review cases. The cases related to decisions to grant waste licences for landfills at Kilcullen, Co Kildare, and Grangemockler, Co Tipperary. Judgment in both cases upheld the agency's decisions.
The EPA also issued two legally-binding directions during 2006 requiring local authorities to take immediate action in areas where an imminent risk of significant environmental pollution had been identified. Both issues were resolved satisfactorily, Dr Kelly said.
A total of 173 investigations were carried out on foot of 499 complaints made to the EPA about activities that were the responsibility of local authorities. The majority of these complaints related to either waste management or water management issues.
As a result of these investigations, seven directions were issued to Louth, Leitrim, Kildare, Sligo, Roscommon, Galway and Kilkenny county councils, while 92 advice and recommendation notices on environmental complaints were issued to other local authorities.
Frank McDonald
© 2007 The Irish Times
Sunday, 25 February 2007
Dublin Waste to Energy project is still on track
Dublin City Council has said that the Dublin Waste to Energy project is still on track and the statutory processes - including the planning application by Dublin City Council to An Bord Pleanála and the application to the Environmental Protection Agency for a license to operate the proposed waste to energy plant for up to 600,000 tonnes of waste annually - are continuing.
Danish Oil and Natural Gas (DONG Energy) - Elsam's new owners - wish to make changes to the commercial arrangements that were agreed between Elsam Ireland and Dublin City Council in 2005 - and discussions are ongoing between Dublin City Council and DONG Energy. Elsam was selected to design, build, operate and finance the Dublin plant.
"The waste to energy project for Dublin is still going ahead" - says Matt Twomey, Assistant City Manager, Dublin City Council. "DONG Energy wish to make changes to the commercial arrangements of the project - including how the project will be financed - and we are in discussions with them about the changes they wish to make. We will issue a statement when these discussions are concluded."
An Bord Pleanála has asked Dublin City Council to put on public display new information recently submitted by the City Council to An Bord Pleanála. This is being arranged.
Danish Oil and Natural Gas (DONG Energy) - Elsam's new owners - wish to make changes to the commercial arrangements that were agreed between Elsam Ireland and Dublin City Council in 2005 - and discussions are ongoing between Dublin City Council and DONG Energy. Elsam was selected to design, build, operate and finance the Dublin plant.
"The waste to energy project for Dublin is still going ahead" - says Matt Twomey, Assistant City Manager, Dublin City Council. "DONG Energy wish to make changes to the commercial arrangements of the project - including how the project will be financed - and we are in discussions with them about the changes they wish to make. We will issue a statement when these discussions are concluded."
An Bord Pleanála has asked Dublin City Council to put on public display new information recently submitted by the City Council to An Bord Pleanála. This is being arranged.
EPA ACCUSED OF NOT MONITORING MOTORWAY AIR QUALITY
The Environmental Protection Agency has been accused of failing to monitor air quality on Irish motorways.
In a submission to the EPA, Friends of the Irish Environment have claimed that the Environmental Impact Assessment for the M50 revealed levels that breached air quality regulations yet the EPA has no monitoring sites on the motorway.
The group claims air quality exceeded the permitted levels were found in the EIA for the M50 widening at Castleknock Road, Park Drive Green, Holyville Terrace, Halting Site at N7, and the Ibis Hotel.
'The public would have never known their health was at risk from the EPA, who are the ones supposed to be monitoring air quality in Ireland', said a FIE spokesman. 'Even early Guidance Documents on the EC Air Quality Directives state that the key pollutants are mainly caused by emissions from automotive traffic. Yet the EPA will not locate their air monitoring sites at our motorways.'
'Monitoring sites should be in the area directly adjacent to our motorways. Roads leading to and from the M50 or any other motorway should also be included as houses on these would have a direct effect from the traffic.' The failure of the EPA to locate their monitoring sites along our major roads conceals the extent of the potential health effects and their contribution to greenhouse gases.
The World Health Organization has shown that the average European city dweller can expect to die a year before the end of his or her natural life span because of air pollution. Children's' lungs develop poorly, making them more vulnerable throughout their lives - particularly to pneumonia and asthma.
And the pollution produced, particularly ozone, can travel many miles into rural areas damaging human health, forest & crops. In California USA estimates of financial cost of plant injury form ozone were as high as $500 million in lost revenue per year.
The European Environmental Agency has stated that Ireland has the 'highest level of growth' in per capital transport emissions in the EU. The EPA itself stated this month that 'the rise of transport emissions was by far the largest in any sector in 2005 and reflected a 160 per cent increase on 1990 figures. 96% of transport pollution came from road transport.'
FIE claims that the Air Quality Directive requires Member States to provide for measures to control and, where necessary, suspend activities, including motor-vehicle traffic, which contributes to the limit values being exceeded.
The submission also reveals:
- that audits to industrial establishments have fallen 68% in the last 2 years while the number of establishments that must be monitored is increasing
- that present water quality standards are not sufficient to save legally protected endangered species
- that contrary to years of promises, no soil monitoring network has been established
and
- that the EPA itself in spite of openly publishing persistent and critical failures in water quality and monitoring by Local Authorities, has yet to use the powers given to it by the Environment Act 2003 to enforce the law.
In a submission to the EPA, Friends of the Irish Environment have claimed that the Environmental Impact Assessment for the M50 revealed levels that breached air quality regulations yet the EPA has no monitoring sites on the motorway.
The group claims air quality exceeded the permitted levels were found in the EIA for the M50 widening at Castleknock Road, Park Drive Green, Holyville Terrace, Halting Site at N7, and the Ibis Hotel.
'The public would have never known their health was at risk from the EPA, who are the ones supposed to be monitoring air quality in Ireland', said a FIE spokesman. 'Even early Guidance Documents on the EC Air Quality Directives state that the key pollutants are mainly caused by emissions from automotive traffic. Yet the EPA will not locate their air monitoring sites at our motorways.'
'Monitoring sites should be in the area directly adjacent to our motorways. Roads leading to and from the M50 or any other motorway should also be included as houses on these would have a direct effect from the traffic.' The failure of the EPA to locate their monitoring sites along our major roads conceals the extent of the potential health effects and their contribution to greenhouse gases.
The World Health Organization has shown that the average European city dweller can expect to die a year before the end of his or her natural life span because of air pollution. Children's' lungs develop poorly, making them more vulnerable throughout their lives - particularly to pneumonia and asthma.
And the pollution produced, particularly ozone, can travel many miles into rural areas damaging human health, forest & crops. In California USA estimates of financial cost of plant injury form ozone were as high as $500 million in lost revenue per year.
The European Environmental Agency has stated that Ireland has the 'highest level of growth' in per capital transport emissions in the EU. The EPA itself stated this month that 'the rise of transport emissions was by far the largest in any sector in 2005 and reflected a 160 per cent increase on 1990 figures. 96% of transport pollution came from road transport.'
FIE claims that the Air Quality Directive requires Member States to provide for measures to control and, where necessary, suspend activities, including motor-vehicle traffic, which contributes to the limit values being exceeded.
The submission also reveals:
- that audits to industrial establishments have fallen 68% in the last 2 years while the number of establishments that must be monitored is increasing
- that present water quality standards are not sufficient to save legally protected endangered species
- that contrary to years of promises, no soil monitoring network has been established
and
- that the EPA itself in spite of openly publishing persistent and critical failures in water quality and monitoring by Local Authorities, has yet to use the powers given to it by the Environment Act 2003 to enforce the law.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)