Alliance to oppose ‘plundering’ of Shannon

A BRANCH of the Shannon Protection Alliance has been established in Limerick in an effort to prevent millions of litres of water being extracted from the Shannon river to boost dwindling supplies in the greater Dublin area.

The plans by Dublin City Council would see water extracted at a rate of 500 million litres per day from a point at Terryglass at the top of Lough Derg.

According to the Shannon Protection Alliance (SPA), this equates roughly to the amount of water that leaks from the Dublin water system. The group has urged Dublin City Council to fix water leaks and conserve water instead of “plundering” the Shannon, which supplies 1.5 million people living along its catchment area.

The Limerick branch of the SPA says it has joined forces with other branches – Athlone (Lough Ree) and Dromineer (Lough Derg) – to present a united front in opposing the proposals on ecological, environmental, commercial, recreational and social grounds.

Speaking at a press conference in Limerick yesterday, PJ Walsh, PRO of the Shannon Protection Alliance, outlined the reasons why Dublin City Council’s plans should be opposed.

He claimed the entire plan was in contravention of the EU Water Framework Directive because of the lack of consultation and failure to address the many adverse affects of any such plan. He warned that if the plan were to proceed, it would spell the end of all planning and development in towns and villages situated on the Shannon, like Carrick-on-Shannon, Rooskey, Lanesboro, Newtowncashel, Athlone and Limerick.

He also claimed Dublin City Council had no traditional legal or riparian right to decree itself a major primary stakeholder of the Shannon.

“Large scale water abstraction increases the increase of blue green algae blooms, a known carcinogenic. Do we need to increase the risk of cancer incidence in the Shannon Basin?” he asked.

Mr Walsh also claimed there was no fallback strategy should the SPA’s worst fears be realised.

“Dublin City Council has refused to concede a shutdown of the pipeline if the damage to our Shannon becomes apparent. Can you cut off the water supply to more than one million people?” he asked.

Outlining the threats specific to the Limerick area, SPA branch spokesman Gerry Siney said Dublin council had “completely ignored” the interests of people in the local region. He also said Dublin could solve its water supply needs without recourse to Shannon waters.

“We are calling on members of the public, stakeholders, public representatives, and all those who wish to see Ireland’s greatest and most vital water course protected, to pledge their support and to join with us in proactively opposing this misguided and unnecessary proposal,” he said.

A public meeting is due to take place next month.