Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The wetlands in Seán Walsh Memorial Park were a vibrant, multilayered ecosystem more by accident than design. There was a murder in the area and the Garda needed to dredge it. Silt was taken from the pond and put on grassland which over a couple of years fostered the creation of an ecosystem. I was one of those involved in clearing the lake, removing plastic bags and so on. I am active in the area and involved in environmental issues. The environmental vandalism was described by one person as being like a punch in the gut. It demotivates and demoralises not only environmentalists and volunteers who help in the park but also park staff. It is clear that we got it wrong. The area regenerated over the years and was bursting with life. There were newts, bats and even critically endangered European eels. Over the weekend people were devastated to learn that the wetlands had been destroyed.

The Minister has said there will be an inquiry, which is positive. It was a case of miscommunication rather than a malicious decision. Nevertheless, the environmental destruction is unacceptable and it cannot happen again in any part of the country. Serious lessons must be learned from this disaster. We are asking for something positive to emerge from this catastrophe. Will the Minister confirm the investigation is going ahead and when it will be finished? Will she liaise with local representatives on this? Does she have a similar view in that we should learn from this catastrophe to ensure it never happens again?

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