Irish Water planning upgrade to Cavan Hill Water Treatment Plant

Irish Water are planning to upgrade the water and sludge treatment process systems at the Cavan Hill Water Treatment Plant in Knockbridge.

The utility company has applied to Louth County Council for planning permission to upgrade the treatment plant, which currently supplies up to 27,000 cubic meters of drinking water per day to Dundalk and its environs.

The planned upgrade comes after question marks were raised about the quality of the town’s drinking water in recent weeks.

Earlier this year a national newspaper suggested that the town’s water was being polluted by diesel launderers operating in the area while just last week Cllr Maeve Yore questioned the local authority on the cause of brown effluent discharge into the River Fane and why fish stock in the river was down.

The council reiterated that there was “no evidence of pollution” following recent inspections, pointing out the plant was being closely monitored and that they were satisfied there was no accidental discharge into the River Fane.

They added that all process wastes are retained on site and disposed of to a landfill.

Despite this, locals will be pleased to see upgrade works planned.

The proposed development will include the provision of a new flocculation tank of approximately 142sqm with an overall height of approximately 6.2m. There will also be a new underground UV chamber of approximately 80sqm.

Internal modifications are also planned to the existing chemical storage building, sludge treatment facility and control building, while modifications will also be made to an existing boundary wall and the existing entrance gate to provide a new entrance arrangement.

There will also be a new external perimeter fence of approximately 1m at the north west and south site boundaries and an internal security fence of approximately 2.4m at all of the site boundaries.

The existing drainage system will also be upgraded to provide a petrol/oil interceptor.

A decision on the matter is due by November 25^th.

Louth County Council to investigate reports of contamination to Dundalk water supply

Contaminated water pictured in a stream outside Castleblayney last week by The Sunday Independent

Following this morning’s monthly meeting of the council, Louth Local Authorities have issued a press statement regarding Dundalk’s water supply.

A newspaper article yesterday claimed that the town’s water was being contaminated as a result of fuel launderers pouring toxic waste into rivers.

However, in a statement released just before lunchtime, the council said that they carried out regular sampling which was “fully compliant”.

They vowed to investigate the claims made in The Sunday Independent though.

The statement read:

“Louth County Council noted media reports yesterday regarding an alleged pollution discharge to Lough Ross in Co Armagh entering the River Fane system which is the source of the drinking water supply for Dundalk.

“Louth County Council on behalf of Irish water has contacted the Water Pollution Inspectorate in Northern Ireland to investigate the alleged incident.

“It is alleged in the media that an oil laundering plant is operating in South Armagh and discharging to a tributary which feeds Lough Ross in Co Armagh.

“The Council carries out regular sampling at various properties throughout the water distribution system for Dundalk. The drinking water sample results for Dundalk Public Water Supply Scheme for 2014 for PAHs is fully compliant with the Drinking Water Regulations and below the 0.1µg/L limit.

“The river water results taken at the Dundalk Water Supply abstraction point on the River Fane during 2014 show COD is less than 40mg/l during the year and therefore compliant with the Quality of Surface Water Intended for the Abstraction of Drinking Water Regulations.

“The drinking water samples for Dundalk Town and Environs have all been compliant with the Drinking Water Regulations 2013 with the exception of  one instance of lead detection. The investigation of this lead non-compliance showed there was no lead on the public side of the public water supply.”

Earlier today, the council also confirmed they would be seeking the Sunday Independent’s evidence of the alleged contamination, which the paper said could cause cancers and abnormalities in unborn babies.

Louth County Council seeking Sunday Independent evidence of water contamination in Dundalk

The matter was discussed at this morning’s Louth County Council meeting

Louth County Council have moved to ease fears over the safety of Dundalk’s water supply following an article in yesterday’s Sunday Independent which claimed it was being polluted by oil launderers pumping toxic waste into it.

The investigation in yesterday’s paper claimed that to have found evidence of carcinogenic waste flowing from an illegal fuel plant in south Armagh into Lough Muckno, Lough Ross and the River Fane, which is the main reservoir for the whole of Dundalk

A sample of water taken by the newspaper last week was alleged to contain 8,000 times more chemical pollution than clean drinking water.

The matter was high on the agenda at this morning’s meeting of Louth County Council, with officials reporting no such problems last year.

Councillors were told that in 2014 there were no incidents of carcinogenic and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons being found in water at Cavan Hill treatment plant. There was one test that showed concerns regarding lead. In 2014 the world youth fly fishing contest took place on the Fane river and there were no traces of fish kills.

The Sunday Independent has been asked for their materials/evidence which made the basis of their article in yesterday’s paper. No response has been received.

Hat-tip to Tomás Sharkey for the update from the meeting. He added: “Not saying it is false…the right agencies need their evidence to do a full investigation.”

Meanwhile, a vote was passed condemning both the IRA and the fuel smugglers at the meeting after being proposed by Cllr John McGahon.

Commenting on the motion, Cllr McGahon said: “I was delighted that Louth County Council accepted my motion that Louth County Council condemns the actions of the IRA and all fuel launders operating along the border.

“These fuel launderers have now moved into the business of poisoning our local waterways.

“The pollution in our rivers is not caused by high winds or high tides or any other environmental matters, it’s caused by criminal activity, the vast majority of which is conducted by well known republicans in the border region.

“I have always believed in straight talking and to put it mildly, these gangsters are engaged in environmental terrorism. People along the border are fearful of them.

“Last year, Louth County Council  spent €65,000 clearing up toxic sludge disposed on our roadways, now these criminals are dumping in our waterways, but what will it cost the people of County Louth in the long run in terms of health,”he said.

It was also agreed at the meeting that Irish Water and the EPA would report directly to councillors on the quality of water in Dundalk as soon as possible.

Concern over claims Dundalk’s water supply could be polluted by fuel launderers

Contaminated water pictured in a stream outside Castleblayney last week by The Sunday Independent

Louth County Council will meet for the first time this year later this morning with a report that oil launderers are pumping toxic waste into local water supplies set to feature heavily on the agenda.

Yesterday’s Sunday Independent claimed that the fuel smugglers were pumping the fuel laundering waste into local rivers and said it could be causing cancers and abnormalities in unborn babies.

The investigation by Jim Cusack found evidence of carcinogenic waste flowing from an illegal fuel plant in south Armagh into Lough Muckno, Lough Ross and the River Fane, which is the main reservoir for the whole of Dundalk.

A sample of water taken by the newspaper last week was shown to contain 8,000 times more chemical pollution than clean drinking water.

The sample, taken from directly behind the plant, one of dozens used by paramilitary smugglers in south Armagh, is also 400 times over the maximum chemical content of waste set by the European Union and Irish Water.

The toxic waste is being pumped directly into a stream that feeds directly into the River Fane drinking water system.

Around 40,000 people living in Dundalk – plus another 8,000 in Crossmaglen in south Armagh – are drinking water from the system that is being poisoned by the IRA fuel launderers.

Chemicals in the pollution almost certainly include polycyclic hydrocarbons that are linked to cancers and prenatal disorders.

Preliminary analysis has already shown that a chemical-oxygen demand (COD) in the sample taken is 8,000mg per litre. There should be near-zero COD in drinking water for humans.

The level of poison was so high that it was off the normal mid-range tests that are used for drinking water in Ireland.

The most common dangerous compounds found in the diesel washing by-product are polycyclic aromatic hydrocabons (PAH).

Tests done on industrial pollutants containing PAHs by the Centre for Children’s Environmental Health have found that exposure during pregnancy has produced heart malformations, premature delivery and low birth weight. Exposure has also been linked to cancers and developmental under-development among children.

Commenting on the matter, Sinn Féin councillor Tomás Sharkey said the alleged pollution was of “serious concern” to him and all public representatives in Louth.

“Cavan Hill water treatment plant supplies most of Dundalk and much of the surrounding area. It draws water from the Fane River. If the details in the paper are true, there is a chance that the water entering the treatment plant is contaminated. This raises obvious concerns for human health and environmental protection.

“I have contacted the Sunday Independent and have asked that any information gathered for that article be shared with the relevant authorities and have specifically asked that laboratory test results on water samples be shared with the staff of Louth County Council.

“Once again, on behalf of all Sinn Féin Councillors in Louth, I am asking the public to be vigilant for incidents of dumping of diesel laundering waste and and also asking for a new report on the workings of the multi agency approach which was tasked with tackling this problem in 2011.”

Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil councillor Declan Breathnach has called on the EPA to investigate the claims made in the paper so that the town can stand over the quality of its water supply once more.

You can read the full Sunday Independent article here.