‘Raw diesel' still in Brosna claims local councillor

A row between Cllr Andrew Duncan and officials representing the county council’s Mullingar Municipal District broke out at a meeting recently over the failure of Westmeath County Council to put an oil interceptor on the River Brosna, despite evidence of hydrocarbons were found to be entering it.

Cllr Duncan – who had raised the issue a year ago, and again a month ago – looked for an update from the council and was not pleased with the response.

“The reason I asked for an update at this meeting was because I felt I was going to get this sort of wishy-washy answer,” an angry Cllr Duncan stated in the meeting.

“This has been going on for nearly a year now. I’m not satisfied with this answer at all,” he said.

“We need an oil interceptor at the outflow. That’s what was asked for a year ago, that’s what I asked for a month ago, and that’s not what I’m asking for now, I’m demanding it!”

“I’m bringing this up for over a year – and something as serious as raw, untreated diesel going into the lake... Jesus Christ!” 

Director of services, Martin Murray, said three private properties on the opposite side of the River Brosna to the Buckley’s car park had been identified as the source of leakages. 

He added that warning letters had been sent to the property owners and he said that the problem had been rectified.

Mr Murray added that the environment section engineers were now looking at runoff as a possible source of contaminant.

Mr Murray said: “I have raised the issue of an oil interceptor being installed in respect of the Buckley’s car park side.

“What the warning letters referred to was the properties on the far side of the river. It is my understanding that they have been rectified and what we want to do now is observe the situation.

“I was informed that an oil interceptor in respect of the surface water runoff wouldn’t be prudent because it could create a hydraulic load backup in respect of flooding.
Mr Murray added: “The three properties on the opposite side were contributing to hydrocarbons entering the River Brosna and that no longer exists,” said the director.

Mr Murray went on to say that the focus had now moved to runoff from the car park.

“It is very, very complicated to try and trace the runs of the pipelines in the car park but the environment section are still examining that. We are trying to deal with the situation,” he said.

Facts

Cllr Duncan retorted: “We’re allowing untreated diesel to go down into a river system and into Lough Ennell. 

“It’s going on way too long and that answer is just not good enough!”

“We agreed to put in an oil interceptor a year ago, but that seemed to have got lost in the system,” continued the Fine Gael councillor.

“The outflow in question is on the north side of the river, the far side of the car park. 

“Where all the issues originate from is from the far side of the car park.

“I’m going to give you the facts,” said Cllr Duncan. “In 2000 I paid for water analysis myself – that’s how seriously I take this. This is going on an awful long time.

“That outflow pipe is not where you’re saying it is. This is the far side of the river – this has nothing to do with the car park. 

“It happens to be situated adjacent to Buckley’s car park, but there’s a mix-up there that it’s runoff. 

“It’s not, this is diesel.

“This was analysed last year, if you had IFI and your environmental officer spend an entire weekend tracing this, I’ve no doubt that it’s still diesel.

“This is coming from a leak in a diesel tank somewhere on the north side of that system – that’s why I’m certain that the only solution, and it was said to me by the fisheries officer, is an oil interceptor.”

Cllr Duncan said that it was embarrassing to walk down the street and have people asking him what he was doing about the pollution on the river, when he had in fact been raising the problem in council chambers for more than a year.

Finally, it was agreed that the director of services and Cllr Duncan would meet with engineers from the council’s environment section, on the site in an effort to rectify the problem.