The High Court's decision to dismiss an attempt by the State to compel the Irish Ispat liquidator to meet the cost of cleaning up the company's former site at Haulbowline was greeted with dismay by local public representatives yesterday. Barry Roche, Southern Correspondent, reports.
Cork South Central Green TD, Mr Dan Boyle, said material leaching from the plant "is now the biggest environmental problem we have in Cork Harbour".
He said he wasn't surprised by Ms Justice Carroll's decision, pointing out that the State's case failed to recognise that much of the pollution at Haulbowline predated Irish Ispat's takeover of the plant. A clean-up by Irish Ispat should have been a condition of the takeover by the Indian steel company.
"Even when Irish Ispat closed, the State should have begun the environmental clean-up immediately, regardless of the court decision," said Mr Boyle.
"By waiting for the court case, the State has effectively allowed the damage to continue and the cost of actual environmental clean-up to increase, so both from a point of view of health and safety and from a financial point of view, I think the Government has failed badly," he said.
Cobh-based Labour councillor and former Irish Steel employee, Mr John Mulvihill, said: "Lakshmi Mittal walked away from Irish Ispat with millions . . . the workers got only their statutory redundancy and now the State is being asked to pick up the bill for the clean-up costs of the place."
Mr Mulvihill said: "I know people were grateful that the jobs were saved but Mittal got that plant for just £1 - he never seriously invested in the plant and he closed it down at short notice and just walked away from it. I see where he spent £50 million on his daughter's wedding last month and now the Irish taxpayer has to come up with €30 million to clean up the place."
Indian tycoon Lakshmi Mittal was known for his skills in turning round no-hope causes in the steel industry. Hopes were high when his company, Ispat International, took over Irish Steel and its multi-million debt.
But by June 2001, Irish Ispat had lost a further £10 million; losses were running at £750,000 a month and Ispat International decided to close the plant. It cited a 40 per cent increase in labour costs, high electricity prices and tough pollution controls requiring a major refurbishment of the steel mill as reasons for the closure.