Save our rivers: Cork waterways that bred Olympians are choked with sewage

In the second in a series on five Irish rivers, Ellie O’Byrne looks at the Bandon and Ilen Rivers in the West Cork catchment whose waters are home to Olympic gold

Green algae caused by pollution floats on the surface of the River Argideen in Shannonvale at a community recreation area that has been closed off to the public by the council for health and safety reasons. Picture: Chani Anderson

It’s one of the most charming river names in the country: the Argideen literally translates from Irish as the “little silver river”. But the Argideen in West Cork has a problem that is both far from charming, and decades in the making.

Barry O’Mahony grew up in the village of Shannonvale, a couple of kilometres outside Clonakilty. As a child, he swam in the Argideen, and played football in the riverside park in the village. Locals including his father regularly maintained the area, installing a barbeque and planting flowers.