Tolka River Pollution Must Be Investigated Immediately – Rock
Glasnevin, Finglas and Drumcondra Cllr. Rock submits official complaint to Environmental Protection Agency, urges those responsible to be held to account
Late Monday night, an incident took place along the Tolka River which saw a large quantity of industrial waste, resembling detergent, dumped into the river. This has caused widespread pollution downstream, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of fish, and may have an impact that will last for years. Recently, wild salmon appeared in the river after an absence of 100 years. Progress like this is now at risk.
Speaking on the issue, Cllr. Rock said: “I have been inundated with phonecalls today from deeply unhappy residents who witnessed this pollution from Mobhi Road and right along Griffith Park. According to the City Council, this ‘pollution incident’ took place overnight. They have taken samples early this morning and are working to identify the pollutant, which will take a day of water testing. It is believed that the pollution flowed into the River via a pipe, though it is not certain exactly where it came from at this point in time – though its identification is a priority. Over 200 dead fish have been spotted now, and it’s a sad situation”
“This is a great disappointment, and whoever is found to have caused this needs to be held responsible. I have submitted an official complaint to the Environmental Protection Agency and hope to receive a swift response to the issue, along with a full investigation. I can’t understand why anybody would do this, and I’ve never seen anything like it along this stretch”.
“The Tolka has been cleaned thoroughly by both Dublin City Council and many volunteers and groups over the last number of years, and was looking great lately, with real progress being measured and wild salmon returning for the first time in a long time, so this is a great shame. It looks to me like industrial waste. I hope that we can find the cause of this problem and make sure a repeat occurence never takes place”.
Image via Twitter user deansontoast