Leitrim County Council conduct investigation to check pollution risk of former Mohill dump

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has said that any discharge from the former Mohill dump site is “not identified as a significant pressure on the river running adjacent to the landfill upstream of Lough Rinn, therefore it was not identified as a significant pressure point for Lough Rinn”.

The clarification came following the January Council meeting, where Cllr Des Guckian again highlighted his concerns over run-off from the former Mohill dump site.

Cllr Guckian said run-off from the “Mohill old dump is seeping into the local waterways” adding, these waters are then feeding into Lough Rinn which he said, “is the most polluted lake in this region”.

At the meeting, Head of Finance, Vincent Dwyer said he “could not understand the basis” on which Cllr Guckian was making these claims.

“If you have a complaint then you should take it up with the EPA. It is unfair to make unsubstantiated allegations against the Council,” said Mr Dwyer.

He said that “from memory” all available documentation on the dump and testing of the nearby waters have been provided to Cllr Guckian.

“The reality is that this is a remediated landfill and that it is monitored and the results are returned to the EPA who assess the results and respond,” said Mr Dwyer.

When contacted by the Leitrim Observer the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a statement confirming that Leitrim County Council was issued a waste licence by the EPA in January 2002 to operate a non-hazardous waste inert landfill at Tullybardan, Mohill, Leitrim (Mohill Landfill).

This provided for the end of waste acceptance at the site that year and the “closure and restoration of the non-hazardous waste landfill”.

As part of the EPA's enforcement of the licence a programme of inspections and report assessments are carried out as part of the monitoring of the landfill and water bodies “to ensure that the landfill will not have an adverse impact on the environment.”

The EPA confirmed it had received a complaint from Cllr Des Guckian last year in relation to the former dump and at this time also became aware that Leitrim County Council was carrying out their own investigation “into possible discharges from the landfill and the impact, if any, on the environment.”

Leitrim County Council is in the process of compiling its investigation report which will be submitted to the EPA by March 16, this year.

“When the report is received, the EPA will assess it and will instruct the Council to undertake any corrective actions arising from the investigation,” noted the EPA.

The statement also stressed the EPA will “continue to monitor and complete independent monitoring of the Mohill Landfill to ensure compliance with the waste licence”. It was also noted that details of the licence, licence application documentation and key enforcement records such as site visits reports are available to view on the EPA website.

Update on Lough Rinn

Responding to concerns raised about discharge from the former dump travelling into Lough Rinn, the EPA said they monitor rivers and lakes as part of its Water Framework Directive national monitoring programme. This covers chemical and physical parameters such as nitrogen and phosphorus, as well as biological communities such as phytoplankton and benthic invertebrates.

“The monitoring data indicates that Lough Rinn is in ‘bad’ ecological status,” acknowledged the EPA, however they noted this is “as a result of nutrient enrichment”.

“There are several significant pressures impacting the status of Lough Rinn including; industry, agriculture, and domestic wastewater. The landfill was not identified as a significant pressure on the river running adjacent to the landfill upstream of Lough Rinn, therefore it was not identified as a significant pressure point for Lough Rinn,” pointed out the EPA.

Lough Rinn is in a Priority Area for Action in the River Basin Management Plan 2018-2021, and the Local Authorities Water Programme are working to improve water quality in the area.

Leitrim County Council said, “Our investigations of the discharges are ongoing, and in this regard, we have additional sampling to carry out before we conclude and finalise our report.”