CRH to face grilling over illegal dumping of waste

CEMENT giant CRH will be grilled today by an Oireachtas committee on why tonnes of waste were illegally buried on its lands.

Large quantities of domestic and commercial waste were discovered on its 680-acre site in Blessington, Co Wicklow, but the firm insists it was placed there without its knowledge.

Officials from Roadstone Dublin, the CRH subsidiary which operates the Blessington complex, will be asked to explain to the Joint Committee on the Environment how the material ended up on its property.

There had been a question mark last week whether CRH would attend today’s committee meeting, but it is understood representatives from the firm will be present.

The company would face a multi-million euro clean-up bill and severe damage to its reputation if it transpired it had responsibility for the illegal dump.

However, the company has emphatically insisted it had nothing to do with the illegal dumping.

In a statement, the company said: “Unfounded allegations relating to Roadstone’s lands at Blessington are very damaging and entirely inaccurate and malicious.

“Roadstone does not permit any dumping of household waste on its lands.”

Other parties due to attend today’s committee meeting include the Eastern Regional Health Authority, An Taisce and Wicklow County Council.

The local authority has used an aircraft to provide thermal images of the area in order to pinpoint all the illegal landfills on the site which is used for legitimate quarrying by CRH.