Fish kills could be prevented by creation of environmental protection agency

4.35.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Mon 17th Jul 2006

Alliance Party Newcastle Representative, Neil Powell, has stated that an environmental protection agency could have prevented the pollution of the River Shimna near Newcastle, which resulted in the loss of 3,000 fish. The Alliance Party has long campaigned for the creation of an Environmental Protection Agency for Northern Ireland.

Neil Powell said: "Its tragic to hear that such a large number of fish were killed by a pollution leak in the River Shimna. It appears that a leak from a sewage pumping station may have caused the pollution.

"An Environmental Protection Agency would be able to address the issue of poor sewage systems in Northern Ireland, and other matters like making beaches cleaner and helping get rid of illegal landfills.

"The Alliance Party has campaigned tirelessly to persuade the government that an Environmental Protection Agency would help eradicate pollution problems and enable a more coherent and effective environmental strategy to be implemented in Northern Ireland.

"The creation of such an organisation is needed as a matter of urgency, as we are facing a race against time to prevent irreparable damage being done to the environment. I call on government to act now before it is too late."

ENDS