Archived press release

Northern Ireland Ministers in deep sewage

5 July 2005

As environmentalists commenced legal action against the Government in the High Court in Belfast today, Ministers and senior civil servants were accused of ignorance and arrogance [1]. Friends of the Earth is seeking a judicial review against the notorious policy that allows thousands of new houses to be built in areas, known as sewage hotspots, where the sewage treatment is inadequate or non-existent [2].

The case against Government has been brought because of Water Service's refusal to provide an assurance that it would not authorise new connections to the public sewer where those connections would increase environmental damage being caused because of inadequate and unlawful sewage systems [3].

John Woods, Northern Ireland Director of Friends of the Earth, said:

"It is astonishing that this issue should end up in court. If Ministers and senior civil servants had an ounce of commitment to Northern Ireland's environment they would have acted on the mountain of opinion against them. Why have they ignored the legal opinion of a leading QC [4]; the Reasoned Opinion of the European Commission [5]; the advice of their own advisers, the Water Council [6]; and the verdict of the Planning Appeals Commission [7], all of whom raise serious questions about the legality of the Government's actions?"

Mr Woods continued:

"I can only conclude that senior civil servants are too arrogant to admit they are in the wrong and Ministers are ignorant of the issue and too detached to care. As Minister with responsibility for Water Service, Shaun Woodward should be taking action to prevent new and harmful connections in sewage hotspots. And as environment minister Lord Rooker should be ensuring that new developments that threaten the environment and people's health because of inadequate sewage infrastructure are not given planning permission in the first place."

Examples of the environmental damage being caused and cited in Friends of the Earth's submission to the Court include:

Omagh sewage works is severely overloaded and was responsible for a pollution incident last year that killed approximately 750 salmon in the River Strule.

The sewage from Bangor's 60,000 residents is discharged untreated into the Irish Sea and a storm water overflow regularly pollutes Ballyholme Bay. Nevertheless, developments that would increase the population equivalent of Bangor by about a third have been proposed in the last three years.

Untreated sewage is regularly discharged at the outfall at Briggs Rocks east of Groomsport where residents regularly 'clean' the rocks of sanitary waste and other sewage detritus.

Lough Neagh is badly polluted. Whilst this is largely from agricultural sources it is worsened by discharge of inadequately treated sewage from Armagh, Portadown, Tandragee, Cookstown, Antrim and Ballyclare via its tributaries. Significant new connections and development are taking place in these areas (particularly Armagh and Ballyclare).

Notes

[1] (back) Papers will be filed in High Court today seeking permission for judicial review against Water Service (an agency of the Department of Regional Development). It is expected that there will be a leave hearing in September.

[2] (back) See press releases at here and here for background on this issue.

[3] (back) Applications for connections to the sewage system are made to Water Service who have a broad discretion whether or not to grant new connections. Friends of the Earth wrote to Water Service on 18 May 2005 asking for a promise that Water Service would not allow further connections to be made where to do so would increase the non-compliance with European law and would increase environmental harm. Water Service replied on 13 June 2005 refusing to make any such promise.

[4] (back) See this press release.

[5] (back) In December 2004 the European Commission issued a Reasoned Opinion to the UK Government regarding planning and sewage issues in Northern Ireland. A Reasoned Opinion is the final stage in an "infringement" procedure by the European Commission before commencing formal legal action against a Member State. See this press release.

[6] (back) The Water Council is a statutory adviser to DOE and DRD on water issues. The Council wrote to Friends of the Earth on 23 Feb 2005 stating, "The Northern Ireland Water Council has asked me to contact you to let you know that it shares your concern about the impact of new development on the water and sewerage infrastructure." The letter concluded, "The Council believes that planning approval should not be granted for new developments unless it is established that the necessary water and sewerage infrastructure is in place to cope with the capacity requirements of any new development."

[7] (back) As a result of the legal opinion of Robert McCracken QC, the Planning Appeals Commission re-opened a number of planning appeal hearings in sewage hotspots. The Commission expressed serious reservations about the legality of current policy and has imposed conditions requiring the installation of discreet sewage plants for a number of new developments.

Friends of the Earth Northern Ireland
7 Donegall Street Place
BELFAST
BT1 2FN
Tel: 028 9023 3488
Fax: 028 9024 7556
Email: [email protected]

Published by Friends of the Earth Trust