Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I apologise that the notice of my Topical Issue matter may be slightly different to the content but I ask the Minister to bear with me because it is an important matter. In recent years, I have been inundated by people contacting me about illegal dumping and problems within local authorities. In County Meath, for example, the Garda and the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, are dealing with the alleged dumping of 16,500 tonnes of illegal waste on farm land. The contractor at the centre of the allegation was working for, and under the supervision of, Meath County Council and its consultants at the time. I have inspected the lands personally and found materials such as carcinogenic coal tar, which is used on the bases of roads, mixed with bitumen, pipes, tyres and many other waste materials. Meath County Council carried out a tier-one investigation of the issue and stated the material was for agricultural improvement uses, although it is clear that bitumen, tar, wheels, axles, tyres and so on are not for agricultural improvement. The EPA, however, refused to accept the outcome of the investigation and as a result Meath County Council carried out a tier-two investigation of the dumping of this material. It did so at a desk, however, without inspecting the land or digging any holes there and the EPA refused to accept the outcome of that investigation too. The EPA is seeking legal advice on how to proceed with the matter and on whether it can force Meath County Council to remove the 16,500 tonnes of waste material from the land.

I cannot say for sure which body is wrong or right and I do not claim to be able to do so, but a family with acres of contaminated land has approached the council, the EPA and even the Committee of Public Accounts for help. A number of Deputies, including me, have tried to help them but the problem has gone on for years and nothing has happened. The land remains barren, while aquifers may be contaminated under it. The owner cannot even obtain insurance for the land, such is the state of it. I know that the EPA has hundreds of files on its desks that are similar to this and that they all need serious investigation. From contact with the Garda, I know it is in a similar position. Justice happens at glacial speed at best, if it happens at all.

A number of things are wrong and I want the Minister to consider this issue with regard to the future development of the sector.

I will discuss in a moment a number of other areas where this has happened. Local authorities are policing their own issues. It is alleged that they may be the transgressors and also investigating what happened. The EPA has a role but it is not powerful. It can refuse to accept the findings of the local authority but it finds it very difficult to go in, police it and force a resolution. The resources to investigate and deliver justice in this regard are nowhere near what is necessary. In the case I am speaking about, such is the pressure created by the disaster in this family's life that it has caused great illness and stress for the family members. Under the current trend of activity, it is highly likely this will not be satisfactorily fixed, at least not in the lifetime of the family who are suffering.

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