Unhappy 3rd Birthday for Ringsend Wastewater Treatment Plant
On third anniversary of the Taoiseach’s official opening of the Ringsend Wastewater Treatment Plant, John Gormley, local TD and Green Party Chairman, has renewed his calls for the Department of the Environment to carry out a full investigation of the “fiasco” which has resulted in serious odour problems for the surrounding communities of Ringsend, Sandymount and Irishtown.
“Three years ago today the Taoiseach opened this plant with great fanfare,” said Mr Gormley. “However since the terrible odour problems became apparent, Bertie Ahern and his government have been keen to take a more hands-off approach. Bertie Ahern was quick enough to take credit at the plant’s opening, but has been nowhere to be seen since the problems began.
“At each stage of this unfolding fiasco, the Government has taken at face value assurances from Dublin City Council that the problem would be resolved without delay. As each successive attempt to resolve the problems failed, the Minister for the Environment continued to resist calls for a full investigation of this plant.
“Three years on from the official opening, Dublin City Council is only now at the early stages of an ‘Odour Action Programme’ which commenced in March and is not due for completion until June 2007. It appears the works undertaken at various times over the last three years were completely inadequate to address the issue, and may in fact have been nothing more than a massive waste of money. We all hope that the current works programme will bring this matter to a close, but past experience doesn’t give us much reason to be confident.
“What is urgently needed now is an independent investigation to lay the facts of this case before the people. The questions which need to be answered are: why was this problem not anticipated; why could the original contractors not fix the problem; who has paid for three years of failed attempts to control the odours; and who will be held accountable for the fiasco?
“Dublin City Council has now belatedly opened its own investigation into the plant, but it is not good enough for the Government to wash its hands of the matter. The Department of the Environment must conduct its own investigation and reveal who is responsible for this cock-up,” concluded Mr Gormley.