Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE) | Oireachtas source

I, too, wish to raise the issue of Lough Neagh. People will remember the horrific scenes they saw last year with the toxic algae on the lake, mirrored to a slightly lesser degree in many other lakes right across this island, North and South. We know it is not a North-only issue. We know it is not an issue that respects any border. We know also from this morning's EPA report that water quality is not getting any better in the South. On some measures, it is getting worse. The quality of water has improved in 187 water bodies but has declined in 232 others. As the director of the EPA's office of evidence and assessment, Dr. Eimear Cotter, said, "having clean water is not an optional extra." It is not something that is nice to have; it is absolutely a vital public good. We need to do everything we can to protect what we have and then drive on with further improvements in water quality. We know what the problem is. We know what we have to do, which is to move away from an industrial model of agriculture with an over-reliance on artificial fertilisers. We also need to invest in proper sewage and water treatment facilities. Are these issues the Taoiseach has discussed with his Northern counterparts?

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