IFI statement re Uisce Eireann prosecution for incident that killed 5,000 fish
- Uisce Éireann to pay fine of €3,500 and €3,267 in costs for River Allow water pollution
Inland Fisheries Ireland(IFI) welcomes the successful conviction of Uisce Éireann following a harmful discharge that caused at least 5,000 fish mortalities in Cork.
At Mallow District Court today, Judge Colm Roberts imposed a fine of €3,500 for a breach of Section 171(1) of the Fisheries (Consolidation) Act 1959, and payment of €3,267 in costs.
The case was brought by IFI following a discharge into the River Allow from the Freemount water treatment plant on June 9th 2024.
Deceased species discovered after a fish kill at River Allow, Co Cork, June 2024
Commenting after the verdict, Sean Long Director of IFI’s south-western region said: “This was an entirely avoidable ecological disaster for a sensitive river habitat.
“In this catastrophic incident an eight-kilometre stretch of river was effectively sterilised, and may take years to recover.”
Species of fish discovered dead include juvenile Atlantic salmon, brown trout, lamprey, eel, stone loach, roach, and dace.
The pollution event occurred on a tributary of the Munster Blackwater catchment at Freemount, north county Cork.
It occurred in a Special Area of Conservation, and the location is a noted spawning habitat for fish.
IFI - the State agency responsible for the protection and conservation of freshwater fish and habitats - continues to urge the public to report instances of fish kills, water pollution, habitat destruction, or illegal fishing to its confidential 24/7 number, 0818 34 74 24.
