Northern Ireland’s environmental monitoring system is “broken” and polluters can act with “impunity”, according to an angling club that lost thousands of fish when slurry spilled into a Co Antrim river.
The Crumlin and District Angling Association has this week received confirmation from the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) that no one will be prosecuted for the widely reported major pollution incident in February 2023.
More than 3,500 fish were killed over a length of six kilometers The Crumlin River in the incident that NIEA blamed on slurry.
The club says there have been 41 confirmed pollution incidents in recent years on the same river, which flows into Lough Neaghbut no prosecution whatsoever.
Crumlin and District Angling Association development officer David Kennedy said there was “no compensation” for the club as custodians of the waters.
“There is no way for us to recover what we have lost in terms of the number of fish and the damage to the entire ecosystem and habitat,” he said.
“Our river is in a much worse state as a result of this major pollution incident, as is Lough Neagh, where all this pollution ultimately ends up.”
Mr Kennedy said that “polluters will continue to pollute with impunity as long as the current approach continues”.
Allen Flemming (left) and David Kennedy of the Crumlin and District Angling Association
“Frankly, the system of reporting, investigating, ranking and closing a case is broken – of the major fish kills in Northern Ireland between 2019 and 2023, astonishingly, 32 out of 49 have not been prosecuted,” he said.
“We believe that urgent change is needed – we will write to both the Minister for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs and the independent panel, requesting a meeting to urgently address these concerns.”
Earlier this week, Agriculture and Environment Minister Andrew Muir appointed a three-person panel to conduct a review of environmental management, including “considering options for an independent environmental protection agency.”
SDLP MLA Patsy McGlone said the lack of “any meaningful action” following the fish kill in the Crumlin River underlined the “urgent need” for an independent environmental protection agency, a commitment in the 2020 New Decade New Approach agreement.
“For far too long, people have managed to pollute our rivers and lakes, kill wildlife and destroy biodiversity, with little consequence,” the Mid Ulster representative said.
“This is far from the first incident of its kind and it certainly won’t be the last unless something is done about it. Instead of bringing forward yet another investigation, the minister should make all his efforts to establish an independent environmental protection agency, which will protect our environment and ensure that anyone who harms it receives the appropriate sanctions gets.’
The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs has been contacted for comment.
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