EPA in touch with Cork County Council about pollution at stream in Whitechurch

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been in touch with Cork County Council about pollution at a stream in Whitechurch.

Testing commissioned by Cork Fine Gael TD Colm Burke showed that samples taken from the stream “had microbiological results similar to the leachate from a septic tank” and were “at the highest level of contamination”.

Mr Burke had said that he did not feel Uisce Éireann, the EPA, or the county council were taking responsibility for the pollution, and that it was unclear who owned the sewage treatment plant from which the outflow was coming.

An EPA spokesperson told The Echo: “Whitechurch pumping station is privately-owned, developer-provided wastewater infrastructure.

“Developer-provided infrastructure (commonly referred to as DPI) is a category of housing estate served by standalone water services infrastructure, provided by the developer of the estate. It is not connected to the public (Uisce Éireann) water services network.

“Further details are available on the Department of Housing, Local Government, and Heritage website.”

The spokesperson added: “Uisce Éireann was assigned responsibility for the remediation of DPI wastewater infrastructure with effect from January 1, 2024.

“A national DPI steering group has been established by the department to oversee the implementation of this decision. The EPA has engaged with the department and Cork County Council about how issues arising at DPIs should be addressed. The EPA has advised Cork County Council that the issues identified at Whitechurch DPI should be raised through the national DPI steering group.”