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[Press Release: December 17, 2001] Greens call on Dempsey to declare waste crisis!As the discovery of several further sites of illegally-dumped hazardous waste inWicklow appears imminent, the Green Party has called on the Minister for the Environment, Noel Dempsey, to declare a waste crisis in County Wicklow."The Minister must now accept that the scale of the waste debacle in County Wicklow is well beyond the ability of Wicklow County Council to handle" says Green Party councillor on Wicklow County Council, Deirdre de Burca."The Greens are calling on Minister Dempsey to dedicate all the resources available nationally - including the Environmental Protection Agency and the Criminal Assets Bureau - to tackling the waste crisis in Wicklow. Above all, European and national waste legislation must be seen to be complied with, and this legislation dictates that any illegally dumped material must be removed and disposed of in a legal landfill" she says. The Green Party were responding to official indications that Wicklow County Council will "contain" the 100,000 tonnes of illegally-dumped hazardous hospital and domestic waste that was discovered at Whitestown in West Wicklow." The council apparently intends to seal the site after officials have reassured themselves that the waste will not cause any environmental damage or water contamination" says councillor de Burca. "It is astounding that the council intends to take such an action when it will be clearly in breach of the EU Waste Directive". Wicklow County Council has argued that the cost of restoring the site to its original condition would be "staggering"- approximately £300 a tonne to remove the waste to a legal site. According to councillor de Burca, under the Waste management (Removal of Hazardous Waste) Regulations 1998, local authorities are empowered to recover any costs incurred in the performance of its functions under these regulations. "We need to see those responsible for the illegal dumping of this dangerous waste pay for its removal to a legal site" says councillor de Burca. "They have made a small fortune from the illegal dumping of the waste, and the fines they have paid to date have been derisory.It is not acceptable that the council allows the Whitestown site to become, in effect, a new landfill in West Wicklow. We now appear to have reached a point where criminals are dictating the location of landfill sites in the county rather than the local authority". For further information please contact Deirdre de Burca on 086 8061450 or email deburca@wicklowgreens.org. |