Farmers ‘hopeful’ that Council investigation can resolve river crux

FARMERS in the Laurencetown area of East Galway are hopeful that a resolution can be found to their river pollution problems that have dragged on over recent years.

Members of Galway IFA, along with local farmers, have met in Loughrea with senior representatives of Galway County Council as well as the District Veterinary Officer, to review ongoing progress in trying to sort out the problem.

It has been established that there is no pollution further upstream on the river, but downstream the waters are seriously contaminated with a strong stench also emanating from the stream.

The Laurencetown River – that flows through the village – before entering the River Suck has had ongoing pollution problems for the past 30 years, according to local farmers.

Several samples have been taken from the river with tests carried out down through the years, without the problem having been resolved.

Local farmers and Galway IFA Rural Development Representative, Ambrose McDonagh, told the Farming Tribune that they were ‘encouraged’ – following the latest meeting late last month with the County Council and County Veterinary Officer, Michael O’Brien.

“Everyone knows that this problem has dragged on for years and years, but we have a commitment from the Council to carry out further investigations in order to get to the source of the problem.

“This has been a very serious problem for farmers over the years, with a number of cases emerging where animals have fallen mysteriously ill, in cases where they had access to the water,” said Ambrose McDonagh.

He added he was hopeful that the latest Council probe into the cause of the pollution problem would result in a resolution of the issue.

“The evidence is quite clear about the stream being polluted. Getting to the root of the problem and putting a solution in place is what we all want to see happening,” said Ambrose McDonagh.