Fish kill in Cork's Douglas River wiped out 1,500 trout and eels

Inland Fisheries Ireland is investigating the cause of the pollution which was brought to their attention by a member of the public

A file photograph of the Ballybrack stream, which is a minor tributary of the Douglas River flowing near Douglas village in Cork City. File picture: Larry Cummins

Investigations are underway into an alarming fish kill in Cork's Douglas River that claimed the lives of 1,500 fish including brown trout and European eels.

The pollution occurred in Ballybrack stream, which is a minor tributary of the Douglas River flowing near Douglas village. The fish kill stretched across a distance of 1.5km. 

Initial indications suggest the presence of a chemical in the watercourse. The Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) were alerted to the pollution by a member of the public.

The incident has prompted an appeal from the organisation, which is reminding the public to store and dispose of household chemicals safely. 

Low water flow and increased temperatures have both been ruled out as possible causes. 

An IFI senior fisheries environmental officer has visited the site of the incident, which was believed to have occurred on July 9. The organisation will continue its probe in the coming weeks to identify the root cause of the pollution. However, it is too early to determine a definite source.

Sean Long, Director of the South-Western River Basin District at IFI, said: “It’s definitely not agricultural. It’s also not industry. It would appear that something got into the surface water drainage system which discharges to the fresh water. 

"We are talking about a couple of litres of something of a chemical nature. It could have been someone emptying out containers but this is very hard to say. It may also have come about from someone cleaning their paint brushes or spilled paint thinners. 

"There might have been a chlorine base. I imagine we might never know but there is a strong possibility it was a household chemical.” 

He hopes the incident will come as a warning to others.

“If anything positive can come out of this it’s getting the message out there to remind people to store and dispose of chemicals responsibly. There is no shortage of facilities for the disposal of unwanted chemicals in the civic amenity centres. There is no excuse for this.” 

Mr Long suspects that the actions of the person responsible stemmed from carelessness.

“You would hope there is no malice in this. It’s hard to imagine someone would intentionally go out and do it but at the end of the day this is pure carelessness. All these products have symbols on them to remind people of the harm they can do to the aquatic environment.

"This can only be stupidity or carelessness but I would suspect the latter. We have had incidents like these in the past but they are not that common. Typically, the most common cause would be agricultural reasons. This is where the higher risk is.” 

He praised the member of the public who raised the alarm: “We really appreciate the public’s ongoing vigilance.”

IFI is encouraging the public to report instances of fish kills or water pollution to its 24-7 phone number, 0818 347424.