Landfill licence refusal for Roadstone widely welcomed
Environment Minister Dick Roche, who represents the Wicklow constituency, declared himself “delighted” with the decision, which means that the 50,000-plus tonnes of illegally-dumped waste on the site will have to be excavated, processed and removed to authorised facilities elsewhere.
Local TDs Billy Timmins of Fine Gael and Liz McManus of Labour also welcomed the decision.
Ms McManus, who is Labour’s deputy leader, said it would have been “untenable” to transform an illegal dump into a licensed landfill.
“The dumping of waste in this manner was not just illegal and socially unacceptable, it also damaged the environment in Co Wicklow and raised serious fears about the possible contamination of key water supplies,” she said.
“Landowners who allowed their land to be used for illegal dumping should be subject to the full rigours of the law and criminal prosecutions where appropriate.”
Roadstone, a subsidiary of building materials giant CRH, has vigorously denied being aware of the illegal dumping prior to the issue being exposed.
Ms McManus said the authorities’ next task was to set a timetable for the removal and safe disposal of the waste.
Mr Timmins reacted similarly, but voiced his unhappiness at the length of time it took for the situation to be addressed.
“I am very dissatisfied at the slow pace of this process. It has been several years since this dump was first discovered, yet only now are we starting to see real action in tackling this huge problem.”
He also called on the EPA to move quickly on another case, involving a site at Whitestown, near Baltinglass. Large quantities of illegally-dumped waste were discovered there in 2002.
Green Party TD Ciaran Cuffe, meanwhile, said common sense had prevailed in the Blessington case.
“It would have been completely unacceptable for a dump to be constructed upstream from Dublin’s water supply,” he said. But he stressed: “There are still questions which Roadstone has to answer. [For example], how they were unaware that such a huge dump was on their lands without their knowledge?”
Wicklow County Council begins looking for illegal waste at Roadstone’s Glen Ding site following media allegations. The company issues a statement saying it is “absolutely confident that no significant quantities of household waste will be found”.
“There is no physical evidence of significant dumping on Roadstone property at Blessington,” the statement continued.
With the facts surrounding more than 50,000 tonnes of waste now long established, the council issues Roadstone with a Section 55 order to clean up the site and requiring it to apply for a waste licence from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to carry out the work.
Under the terms of the Council’s Section 55 notice, Roadstone applies for a licence from the EPA to create a one-off landfill.
The EPA delivers a draft ruling rejecting the landfill application. Roadstone makes a submission agreeing to clean up the site completely should the final ruling reach the same conclusion.
Roadstone refuses to attend an Oireachtas Committee hearing into the illegal dumps on its land saying it will only appear after the EPA’s decision.
Councillors in County Wicklow call on Minister for the Environment Dick Roche to appoint a High Court inspector to investigate issues surrounding illegal dumping in the county. As a first step, councillors want the inspector to investigate dumping on Roadstone’s land at Blessington.
Mr Roche suspends funding for reservoir at the Roadstone site. Earlier in November, An Bord Pleanála rules against plans by Roadstone for an extension to its quarrying operation at Glen Ding.
The final EPA ruling does not differ from its draft decision and Roadstone agrees to immediately begin moving the illegal waste on its lands to legal landfill sites elsewhere.
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