Seán Conlan (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

To add to what Deputy O'Dowd has said, it is important that the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Kelly and the Northern Ireland Minister for the Environment, Mr. Durkan, visit the area in question. The Minister of State said in his reply that the sample was taken from south Armagh but it was not; it was taken in Castleblayney in County Monaghan. Therefore, it is primarily the responsibility of our Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government and the EPA. I want them to be on the ground, checking out the river where the pollution took place to determine exactly the cause of the problem. These are not just allegations - there is video evidence and samples were taken and tested. The test results confirmed that there were over 8,000 times the safe limits for toxic pollutants in the water in that location. It would be very helpful if the Minister visited the area immediately to see exactly what is going on. It would also be very helpful if the Deputies from both constituencies and the representatives from south Armagh were on the ground too, with both Ministers, to get a proper handle on the situation. As we have said, it has been going on for far too long. It is very concerning and we should not have to depend on newspaper reports to get information.

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