Dirty Water: Tipperary

Twenty years ago North Tipperary County Council believed they had solved their waste disposal problems when they bought an old gravel quarry in Ballaghveny outside Nenagh. Since then the drinking water wells of several neighbouring houses have become contaminated. Despite sealing the dumps our testing established that water from the wells is still unfit for human consumption.

• Listen to the report on Today with Pat Kenny, Thursday 26th April, 2007: listen

The concerns of other residents in the area were heightened recently when rips were seen in the lining of the landfill. The rip photographed here is about two and a half feet in length (CLICK HERE FOR BIGGER IMAGE). Ground springs could be seen bubbling up under the rips and fears were expressed that toxic leachate from the dump was mixing with the underground water system.

Even more fundamentally environmental experts have queried why a dump would be located right beside a floating bog. Locals say that the bog acts as a sponge absorbing moisture all around. When we tested the surface waters in the vicinity they showed very heightened levels of chemical pollution. Ultimately much of the waters from the bog ends up in group water schemes.

Leachate is the liquid run off from landfill. It can contain anything from infectious bugs to toxic chemicals. Like every other landfill in Ireland Ballaghveny has no means of neutralising its Leachate. Instead it collects it in tankers and drives it to the Sewage Treatment Plant in Nenagh. From there it is pumped into Lough Derg. Environmental scientists have expressed concerns that the Treatment Plants are not designed to filter leachate and very dangerous substances are getting in to Lough Derg.