This article is from page 18 of the 2006-03-28 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 18 JPG
CLARE County Council has been hit with yet another notification of non-compliance by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for their management of the Inagh landfill.
It is understood to be the tenth such notice that the council has received since the landfill opened in September 2002.
At last night’s March council meeting, the Council’s Director for the Environment, Ger Dollard told councillors that the council was to contest the notification with the EPA because it lacked sufficient grounds.
The EPA’s move followed the instituting of High Court proceedings by residents, in a bid to have the facility shut down. They’re also seeking damages. Mr Dollard didn’t reveal the details of the non-compliance, but commenting on the High Court action, he said it was unfortunate that it had gone to court.
“The Council has put in place a huge number of measures at the facility to ensure that it is operated to the highest standard.”
The level of waste being disposed at the landfill has plummeted with possible ramifications for the Council’s Environment budget. Mr Dollard said that the rate of tonnage at the landfill this year was operating at 42 per cent of its capacity.
This was due to the additional options waste collectors had in disposing of waste at alternative landfill, he said. Mr Dollard said that the drop in waste being deposited at the landfill “will have huge financial implications”.