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[Press Release: November 27, 2001] GREENS TO MAKE EU COMPLAINT ABOUT ILLEGAL DUMPING OF HOSPITAL WASTEGreen Party MEP Nuala Ahern and her colleague on Wicklow County Council Councillor Deirdre de Burca, have announced their intention to lodge an official complaint with the European Commission concerning the illegal dumping of hospital waste in County Wicklow. The Greens' decision follows the discovery of a second location at Whitestown near Baltinglass in West Wicklow where large quantities of hospital waste have been illegally dumpedAccording to Nuala Ahern the Government has failed to ensure the enforcement of waste legislation in Ireland and this is absolutely scandalous. At Coolamadra at the Glen of Imaal and Whitestown near Baltinglass over 100,000 tonnes of waste was discovered, including syringes, empty body fluid bags, medical records etc. Wicklow County Council has said that they will prosecute those responsible but previous prosecutions have not acted as a deterrent because fines in the district court are paltry. Because of the seriousness of the current discovery of hospital waste Ms Ahern is convinced that there are grounds for a criminal prosecution and she said that a file should be sent to the DPP for their consideration. According to the Green Party Councillor Deirdre de Burca, the second discovery of illegally dumped hospital waste in West Wicklow is extremely worrying. "It is clear that County Wicklow is regarded as a "soft touch" by those who are engaged in illegal dumping" she says. "My fear is that there may be many more such sites in the county that have not been discovered as yet". Councillor de Burca points out that illegally dumped hospital waste is a cause of particular concern to the public as much of this waste is classified as "hazardous waste". "If we take West Wicklow as an example, the land in this part of the county is very porous and it is very possible that some contamination of water supplies occurred. However, as many people locally belong to Group Water Schemes, there is no obligation on the County Council now to test their water. This means that any members of the public concerned about the possible contamination of their water supplies as a result of the illegally dumped hospital waste will have to pay themselves to have the water tested. This is clearly unfair to local people in those areas". Councillor de Burca believes that the way in which Wicklow County Council decides to respond to the illegally dumped waste that has been found will send out a clear message to all of those involved in waste collection and disposal. "We need to send a message out that there is a policy of Zero Tolerance with regards to illegal dumping in the county," she adds. "If the council fails to do this, the problem of illegal dumping and the environmental damage that accompanies it will just continue to grow". For further information please contact Deirdre de Burca on 086 8061450 or email deburca@wicklowgreens.org. Nuala Ahern MEP can be contacted on 00 32 2 284 5139 Mobile 087 2304077 |