Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour)

The north-east waste management strategy, with incineration as its focus, was rejected by local authorities across the region, specifically Louth County Council, but it was imposed by the then Minister, Mr. Noel Dempsey. From start to finish, the process was an anti-democratic stitch-up, with a predetermined outcome which flew in the face of any semblance of local community intervention or democratic input at local level.

It is unfortunate to acknowledge in the Chamber today that I again feel anti-democratic decision making processes are beginning to rear their heads on the question of what it is we will do as a society and a community with the bottom ash left over from the burning of municipal waste at the Indaver facility at Carranstown. The Minister of State will know that only a matter of weeks ago Louth County Council decided unilaterally to sign an agreement that would essentially welcome the bottom ash into the council's landfill at Whiteriver, Philipstown, County Louth. This has caused a huge amount of anger, frustration and anxiety among the community at Philipstown. Local residents have gone through a tortuous enough time in recent years in terms of the operation of that site, with which the Minister of State is familiar. To add insult to injury, the council has signed off on a massive deal with Indaver to dump its bottom ash into what is already a troublesome site.

We are told by the council that the deal complies with what it calls the proximity principle. I want this matter to be informed by the precautionary principle. In other words, if there is any doubt, the bottom ash should be left out. There are huge concerns over the question of whether bottom ash is hazardous or non-hazardous, and the Minister of State will be aware that the literature and research in this area varies. As this is the first operation of its kind in the country, there is anxiety at the capacity of the authorities, such as the EPA and the county council, to deal effectively with this and to address the legitimate fears of the residents of the Philipstown area and the wider Louth area with this approach. Until such time as we can say with complete confidence that the bottom ash does not pose a threat to the people of Philipstown, I ask the Minister of State to use his influence with the Minister, Deputy Hogan, to intervene with the EPA to review the situation. We must stop Whiteriver from accepting the waste as agreed by Louth County Council, at the very least until such time as we can all be 100% certain that the safety of the bottom ash can be guaranteed.

The Minister of State might also use his influence with the Minister, Deputy Hogan, to arrange a meeting with the residents of Philipstown to attempt to assuage their legitimate and valid fears about this issue, which is a novel one given we are dealing with Ireland's first municipal incinerator and the first case of this kind in the country.

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