Winter smog shows failure of Arlene Foster's green policy

11.10.00am GMT Wed 20th Feb 2008

Alliance North Belfast representative Gerry Lynch

Gerry Lynch , the Alliance Party's Executive Director and North Belfast spokesperson, has said that the last week's clear but smoggy weather underlines how Arlene Foster's failure to create an independent Environment Agency is hurting our quality of life.

Gerry Lynch said:

"Like most people I have enjoyed the recent clear, bright, weather. But the pleasant winter sunshine has shown how badly our environment in Belfast has been damaged.

"Go to any high point in the City when there is a stable high pressure area like there was last week, and you will see a blanket of pollution clearly visible over Belfast. From the Cave Hill, the City is covered in an ugly film of brown smog.

"We desperately need action to tackle this problem. The chronically high level of respiritory diseases in North Belfast shows how pollution ruins the lives of people - usually the very young, the very old and the very poor.

"Last September, the Assembly unanimously backed an Alliance motion to introduce an independent Environmental Protection Agency. Northern Ireland is the last place in Britain or Ireland without one. Without it, we have a situation where the people checking that civil servants are implementing environmental laws are civil servants from the same Department! Is it any wonder that we have an appalling record on implementing European environment laws, and are doing disgraceful things like dumping raw sewage into the Irish Sea.

"Arlene Foster, the DUP Environment Minister, promised the Assembly that she would come back to them with costings for an independent Environment Agency by Christmas. Yet here we are in February with no sign of progress.

"This Executive is failing the people of Northern Ireland. If the Chuckle Brothers spent less time giggling at one another and more time running a government, issues like this would be tackled."

ENDS