Deadline set for an end to Ballyhornan sewage spills

Deadline set for an end to Ballyhornan sewage spills

30 May 2012 - by David Telford

NORTHERN Ireland Water has been ordered to stop the pumping of thousands of gallons of raw sewage into the Irish Sea at Ballyhornan on a daily basis.

The Environment Agency has responded to increasing community and political concern about what has been described as an “environmental time bomb” by ordering that the issue is addressed.

Northern Ireland Water has been warned about its failure to comply with requirements for treating raw sewage in Ballyhornan and given until the end of March next year to put things right.

Homes at the former Ministry of Defence base are connected to a sewage pipe which pumps waste water directly into the sea off the local coastline in contravention of strict discharge standards.

One of the major stumbling blocks in addressing the issue over the years has been NI Water’s reluctance to adopt sewers at the MoD base. But the Environment Agency is demanding action and wants the practice of pumping untreated sewage into the sea stopped.

Local politicians Chris Hazzard MLA and Dermot Curran have welcomed the enforcement order imposed on NI Water. The Assembly-man told a Stormont debate on Ballyhornan last week that the “abysmal conditions” people who live in the village have to endure must addressed.

“The enforcement order must be fully complied with by March next year and I will endeavour to ensure those responsible are held to task in the months ahead,” he said.

Mr. Hazzard said he has written to Stormont Minister Danny Kennedy asking what steps NI Water will be taking to comply with the Environment Agency’s directive.

Councillor Curran claimed pumping raw sewage into the sea “contravenes every water quality directive under the sun,” suggesting such a situation would not be tolerated anywhere else.

He added: “Raw sewage has been flowing into the sea off Ballyhornan for decades. Promises of help in the past were never delivered but NI Water must act now. How ironic it is that a body which has a key role to play protecting the environment is allowing this to happen off our local coastline.”

An NI Water spokeswoman confirmed it has been involved in ongoing consultations with local representatives and residents in the Ballyhornan area in relation to unadopted sewers and privately owned roads in some housing developments.

“Unfortunately, the sewers within these developments are not of sufficient standard for NI Water to adopt. Furthermore, these private sewers are in poor condition and will require significant investment in order to bring them up to standard. 

“As a short term solution, NI Water is currently progressing plans to improve the sewerage system at Ballyhornan by undertaking some network alternations, provision of fine screening facilities and remedial work to the sewer outfall. A longer term solution will be to intercept so-called screened flows and to pump sewage to an upgraded treatment plant in Ardglass.”

The spokeswoman said progress on the upgrade work has not been completed as quickly as NI Water would have wished owing to difficulties encountered with acquiring land.

The spokeswoman added: “NI Water first started land negotiations in 2009 which is testament to our commitment to bring this work forward.

Unfortunately, this means we cannot therefore move this process along any quicker than it is already moving.”

Confirming NI Water has received an enforcement notice from the Environment Agency regarding elements of the sewerage network at Ballyhornan, the spokeswoman warned that until NI Water can resolve outstanding lands issues to allow improvements to the sewerage system to be completed, “it can only continue to maintain the existing public sewerage system in the area.”