The Green Party has welcomed the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) refusal to grant a licence for the construction of a dump on the Roadstone site in Blessington Co. Wicklow where up to 110,000 tonnes of illegal waste is buried in a 600-acre site.

Green Party Environment spokesperson, Ciarán Cuffe TD said that, “It is good to see that common sense has prevailed. It would have been completely unacceptable for a dump to be constructed upstream from Dublin’s water supply.

“There is are still questions which Roadstone has to answer. How could such a huge dump be on their lands without their knowledge?”

Green Party Councillor Deirdre de Burca (Wicklow County Council) said that, “This is a great decision for the people of Blessington. Groups like Blessington Residents Against Dumps (BRAD) and the Blessington Forum are to be congratulated on the very active campaign they ran opposing the licensing of a legal dump on Roadstone’s land. There is no reason now why the Blessington Relief Road should not be fully completed and opened as soon as is possible”.

The Green Party councillor has also expressed some concern about the wording of the EPA decision, as she believes that it may result in much of the existing illegal waste being left on the site. “We want to see all the waste, including contaminated soil, removed from the site” she says. “Roadstone must completely remediate the site.” to. She has also called for adequate facilities to be included in every house for the storage of dry recyclable materials.

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Press Release by Deirdre