East Derry MLA Claire Sugden has called for better messaging from government departments and local councils about the current risks of blue-green algae.
Sugden said “more needs to be done” and that the messaging from the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), councils and the Environment Agency needs to be more regular and sent out widely to inform the public.
Last week, the Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council put up a message that the algae had reached the Cloonavin area of the Bann, near the main council offices.
However, Sugden said that constituents were unsure of the safety of bringing pets and children to the beaches on the north coast.
“We have seen the steady spread of the blue-green algae from Lough Neagh down the Bann and in other parts of Northern Ireland unconnected to Lough Neagh,” she said.
“The Department of Agriculture Environment and Rural Affairs has been very vocal about the plan for the lough, but while action is indeed needed and welcome, people need to know the current state of the waterways where they go to walk their dogs or bring their families.
“My office has been contacted by people who are concerned about where they can and can’t go. Many are simply avoiding the beaches altogether.”
Sugden said the tests that have been done in and around the lough have shown there are some “nasty diseases” contained in the algae.
“More needs to be done and the messaging from DAERA, councils and the Environment Agency need to be more regular and sent out widely to inform the public,” she said.
Blue-green algae
A study published by researchers at Queen’s University Belfast (QUB) last week confirmed Lough Neagh as hypertophic – the worst category of waterway nutrient pollution – which indicates “decades of agricultural, industrial and domestic runoff”.
The key finding and recommendation of the study is that reducing agricultural runoff and discharge from human wastewater treatment needs to be the top priority of all stakeholders including government.
The study focused on the ecological impact and environmental and public health risks that the blue-green algae in Lough Neagh presents.
The UK and Ireland’s largest freshwater lake provides more than 40% of Northern Ireland’s drinking water and supports Europe’s largest commercial eel fishery.
It drains around 40% of Northern Ireland’s land, of which three-quarters is agricultural.
Lead author, Dr Neil Reid at the Institute of Global Food Security, Queen’s School of Biological Sciences said: “These results confirm Lough Neagh as ‘hypertrophic’ which is the worst category of waterway nutrient pollution, indicative of decades of agricultural, industrial and domestic runoff.
“Our results are consistent with claims of faecal contamination of Lough Neagh and its tributaries, most likely from farm livestock and human-effluent wastewater treatment plants.”
