Residents appeal

Residents appealing sludge hub proposals

Neill O’Neill

RESIDENTS in the area around the Derrinumera landfill site have made submissions to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and An Bord Pleanála outlining why a central sludge treatment plant for the county should not be built there.
Mayo County Council are planning to build a facility beside the landfill site to treat the sludge cake from all the sewerage treatment plants in Mayo. At present the sludge is taken out of the county in tankers to be treated elsewhere and the Council decided in 2003 that they had to begin treating the sludge in Mayo.
Upon official approval, they plan to seek tenders for the plant which will be built and operated on a ‘design build operate’ (DBO) contract. This means the plant will be a private enterprise, operated by an individual or company.
Once the Council identified the landfill site at Derrinumera as an appropriate location for the plant, locals began voicing their protestations and formed the Residents Against Sludge Hub action group. They are now awaiting responses from the EPA and An Bord Pleanála before deciding what course of action their campaign should take next.
Maureen Smith, Chairwoman of the Residents Against Sludge Hub group, told The Mayo News that the prevailing westerly winds would blow dust and odours from the plant down into Glenisland.
“There will be a dreadful amount of noise and a terrible smell from the plant,” she said. “It is sewerage waste no matter what way you look at it. We had a presentation from the Council and the engineers which was very convincing, but we were not convinced. They said the roads in the area are excellent and fit to cope with the heavy traffic but they are not excellent at all and they also said the plant will be state-of-the-art but after time the standards could drop and that will have a negative impact on our lives.”
The group have erected signs in the area, outlining their discontent, and have over 1,300 signatures on a petition from residents in Cuilmore, Fahy, Glenhest, Glenisland and Islandeady.