Ahern's relative in council landfill dispute

Kildare County Council has initiated legal action against a landfill operation on land belonging to the family of the Taoiseach's sister.

The landfill and concrete crushing facility is located on a 40 acre holding registered to Mr Daniel Murphy of Donadea Demesne near Clane. Mr Murphy is married to the Taoiseach's sister, Kathleen, who lives in the family home on the land.

Kildare County Council has previously issued warning and enforcement notices to both Mr Murphy as the land owner and a haulier, Mr Matt Stones of M. Stones Ltd, who is the operator of the landfill.

Following the warning notices issued under the planning acts, the council granted a waste permit to Mr Stones to landfill a limited amount of clay and stone.

The permit was for 18 months from July 2002, but in February of this year the council told the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that: " Mr Stones is now operating without a waste permit contrary to section 39 (9) of the Waste Management Act 1996."

In the letter, a copy of which has been seen by The Irish Times, the council comments that its planning department "has initiated enforcement action as there is no planning permission for this site and the waste permit can not be extended while this matter is ongoing".

An application for an extension of time for the landfill was deemed inadmissible last July after Kildare County Council ruled a completely new application was required. The council also took the view that the activity could not be considered a land reclamation scheme.

Coillte, which owns the adjoining Donadea Demesne, objected to the application on the grounds that the material was of a sufficient height and bulk to have damaged fences one metre inside the Coillte lands. Coillte also said the spoil was blocking drains and had damaged watercourses on the land, which is a candidate Special Area of Conservation.

The council's director of corporate services, Mr Charlie Talbot, told The Irish Times that while the council was cautious about prejudicing any legal action, it was a matter of public record that the waste permit had expired in January 2004.

Mr Talbot also said "a call had been received from Mr Murphy within the last 14 days to the effect that rubble had been removed from the site".

Mr Murphy told The Irish Times yesterday that the landfill was required to raise the level of his land after drainage on the adjacent Coillte lands was damaged during a tree harvest.

He had not paid Mr Stones for the landfill material and had not received payment for allowing his lands to be used.

Mr Murphy said the only benefit to himself was to have the land raised "from a lake". The issue of builders' rubble being brought on site was one which he himself had some concern about, he said, but had received assurances that it was being taken off-site again.

Mr Murphy said there was a concrete crusher on site but refused to comment on it further, as he knew "nothing about it".

Mr Murphy said he was aware the waste permit was out of date but added that the project would soon be completed. The reason the issue had come to light, he said, was because "people were looking for trouble".

Mr Murphy said he had simply been reclaiming land as many land-owners did in boggy areas and he had been inspired by similar projects elsewhere. "Mr Stones took on the job and I might get grass money for a few cattle out of it, maybe when it is finished and reseeded".

He acknowledged that he was the Taoiseach's brother-in-law but added: "I've never asked Bertie Ahern for a thing in my life".

Efforts to contact Mr Stones by telephone, through Mr Murphy and through a relative, were unsuccessful over the past four days and messages were not returned.