‘No way’ work was unauthorised

THE sub-contractor employed to clean up the site on Haulbowline Island yesterday rejected Government claims that he engaged in unauthorised work.

Louis O’Regan said yesterday there were people in the department and in Cork County Council who knew what and how much waste was buried on the contaminated site.

Mr O’Regan’s firm was sub-contracted last October to carry out a clean-up.

A Government statement on Wednesday night claimed that he had engaged in “unauthorised actions” by removing hazardous waste from the site.

Yesterday, Mr O’Regan broke his silence on the affair to say there was “no way” he was accepting any suggestion of unauthorised activity.

“The fact is,” he told the Irish Examiner, “that I was contracted by the State to remove all hazardous waste from this site and that is all I was trying to do. As far as I am concerned there is no difference between the first ton and the last ton.”

Responding to suggestions that his motivation was money, he said: “I am a businessman and I won’t apologise for that.

“I live two miles away from this site. The department should not be concerned about my motivation, they should be concerned that 500,000 tonnes of hazardous waste is lying on this site.”