Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

This is unusual because, in 2003, the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in the North of Ireland introduced a farm management nutrients scheme in accordance with the European Parliament legislation to prevent farm pollution. Some 4,000 farmers participated in the scheme and the specifications set out for the scheme involved the construction of new, impermeable slurry tanks and dirty water storage tanks in compliance with the EU nitrates directive. That code required that all concrete structures designed and constructed under its terms must pass the seven-day leak test before use.

It is alleged that what was then the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in the North of Ireland illegally gave a waiver allowing for construction without a seven-day test. I understand that this happened under the former Ministers for Agriculture and Rural Development, Michelle Gildernew and Michelle O'Neill, and continued up to the current Minister for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Edwin Poots. Has the Department here investigated the possible damage being done to watercourses in the south of Ireland by leaks from the slurry tanks in the North? Has the Minister spoken to the Department in that regard or sought to have this investigated? This matter has been raised with the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, but it has said that it is not investigating it. I have also raised this question with the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications and it stated that it is not investigating this topic. I raise this issue with the Minister because he is from Donegal and this concerns the watercourses in his county.

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