The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has refused an application by a company to construct a landfill at Whitestown in Co Wicklow on the site of one of the largest illegal dumps ever discovered in the country.
The EPA yesterday confirmed a decision taken originally last April to refuse permission to Brownfield Restoration Ireland to develop an engineered landfill at Whitestown. Instead the EPA granted a restricted waste licence to allow for a clean up or remediation of the illegal landfill on the site. Up to 250,000 tonnes of material may have been dumped illegally on the site when it was in the hands of previous owners.
The EPA said this waste could generate potential harmful emissions that could cause "significant environmental pollution if left unaddressed". Under the ruling given yesterday the EPA specifically required all potentially polluting wastes to be excavated, processed and dispatched for safe disposal in authorised facilities. It specifically banned the importation of waste on to the site and ordered that dust, gas and contaminated water be managed safely throughout the restoration programme.
The EPA also said that excavated areas of the site must be reinstated with inert materials.
The EPA decision was welcomed yesterday by Minister for the Environment Dick Roche. He said the requirement on the new owners to carry out a full remediation of the site was in keeping with a policy direction he had issued in May 2005 on dealing with illegal waste activities.
"The decision sends out a strong and clear message to all landowners - do not even contemplate allowing your lands to be used for unauthorised or illegal dumping activity. Illegal dumping does not pay. It's a mug's game.
"If you allow your land to be used for illegal dumping, you will be caught and you will face court action with the prospect of very heavy fines and/or prison. On top of that you will face hefty costs for cleaning up the mess and restoring the land," he stated.
The EPA said it had received seven objections to its original decision issued last May.
It was satisfied that the remediation programme would eliminate the environmental risks associated with the site and provide a high level of protection for the environment and public health.
"On completion of the programme, there will be no residual environmental issues of any significance associated with the site or its environs as a result of the historical illegal waste activities," the EPA stated.
The agency said the company had sought permission for a landfill facility to deal with commercial, industrial, construction and household waste. However, the EPA believed that the site, in its current condition, was not suitable for a non-hazardous landfill.
