A discharge changed the colour of the Liffey in Dublin to wine yesterday evening. Onlookers reported the city stretches of the Liffey took on a wine colour at about 4.30 p.m. yesterday, the colour spreading as the river flowed under O'Connell Bridge to Dublin Bay. By 5 p.m. the river had a reddish hue.
A spokesman for Dublin Corporation's emergency telephone line said the source of the colouring was unknown but it originated in the South Dublin County Council area. He said the colouring entered the Camac River, a tributary which joins the Liffey near Heuston Station.
Members of the South Dublin County Council's environmental services were unavailable for comment last night. The emergency service operator said the council's environmental inspectors were aware of the pollution and were trying to determine its source.
Workmen for Pierce Contracting Ltd, building the boardwalk on the Liffey, said they noticed the wine coloured pollution at 4.30 pm.
Last night the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said the pollution had been reported to it by an eye-witness as a "pinkish/ reddish colour" in the water. An EPA spokesman said the Camac river runs underground for part of its course which makes it difficult to trace discharges.
An EPA spokeswoman later said the source was unlikely to be a company licensed by the EPA. "It would be a condition of the licence of any company licensed by the EPA to inform us immediately of any danger such as fire or leaks", she said.
By 10 p.m last night the wine colour in the river appeared to have faded, although a high tide may have complicated matters.