Call for Aughinish licence probe

TAOISEACH Bertie Ahern will come under pressure today to order an independent investigation into how the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a licence to the Aughinish Alumina plant.

Mr Ahern is visiting the Co Limerick plant to view the construction of its €125 million combined heat and power plant which will feed most of its energy into the national grid.

But an internal EPA memo has revealed that almost one million tonnes of waste dumped in giant lagoons at the plant were classified as "hazardous" seven years ago.