Councillor Claims Courtown Pollution Issues Being Ignored Due To Geography

People in Courtown say they have resorted to getting their own water tested due to pollution issues in their area.

Scum and discoloured water has plagued the area for the last number of years and Wexford County Council still have no cause for it.

The issue was raised at the last meeting of the Gorey/Kilmuckridge Municipal District which heard calls for constant water monitoring in the region.

Fine Gael councillor Darragh McDonald says residents are taking things into their own hands because of the lack of official action:

"I know there's people who have taken to getting the water tested themselves, or suggesting that's what they'll need to be doing and fundraising to get that testing done because the council won't do it.

"That's simply not good enough because there's a really active community down there and they should be able to rely on us as the council to step forward and do this and do it right."

Councillor McDonald has suggested a North/South divide in the county is the reason why the water is so poor in the Courtown area.

Council officials are said to be investigating the source of pink runoff which was seen spouting out of pipes there last month.

It's the latest in a long line of pollution issues facing the region with a culprit still to be found.

Councillor McDonald says these issues wouldn't be accepted in any other part of the county:

"I think if this was any beach further south, the council would be taking this much much more seriously.

"The fact that we lost the only Blue Flag beach north of Cahore doesn't seem to be getting the focus it deserves.

"That combined with Courtown shows a lack of action and lack of real will to get it sorted once and for all or do a proper investigation is a bit concerning."

Environment officials are being urged to take a proactive approach when it comes to dealing with these pollution issues.

Residents say they have been forced to investigate trouble with the water system up there themselves as the official response time has been too slow.

Councillor McDonald says everyone is frustrated by the length of time it's taking to get a handle on this:

"That's backed up by the effort it took to get Courtown Beach and the Boardwalk opened back up. That was 6 months of constant pressure.

"You can see it in the meeting minutes for the Gorey Kilmuckridge District, we're constantly asking 'why why why?'

"There's constant reports going, visibly you can see cloudy water, colours coming out of pipes and there doesn't seem to be any urgency."

That report was funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.