In May of the previous year, Jane Gilleran, a fisheries officer with Inland Fisheries Ireland, retrieved 14 deceased marine creatures from a refrigerator at the institution’s headquarters in Corofin, Co Clare. These specimens were discovered a day prior by her IFI coworker in the Ballymacraven river, Essex, and kept in a safe place. Among them were some of the most critically threatened species in Ireland, including the European eel, Atlantic salmon and brown trout.
With the help of a Nikon microscope, Gilleran scrutinised their gills, their underwater breathing apparatus. In a healthy state, these gills are vividly red, flaunting their loosely held, comb-like filaments. However, she was met with a shocking sight; the gills were crammed with globs of rust-coloured material, some coated in mucus, others inflamed.
Gill tissue samples were dispatched to a laboratory for an examination. The conclusion was decisive: this thick, tomato-sauce-like substance was a chemical by-product encapsulating ferric sulphate, a coagulant utilised to extract contaminants in water treatment plants.
The unfortunate demise of these fish, caused by the ferric sulphate, could have remained a mystery if not for a vigilant passerby who walked by the river three days earlier. They observed an unusual russet fluid in the water, captured its image and reported to the IFI.
The subsequent day, accompanied by two fellow IFI officers, Gilleran visited the Ennistymon Water Treatment Plant, where an orange sediment was found near the drain pipe emptying into the river. The riverside was blanketed in a brown residue and a tree stump appeared as if it had been dappled with a rust-tinted goo, à la an abstract Jackson Pollock painting.
Upon inspecting the plant’s deposit tanks, they collected samples that proved to contain acidic remains bearing exceptionally high iron concentrations, a characteristic trait of ferric sulphate. Within a day, lifeless fish began appearing along the riverbanks, mouths agape, indicating they were gasping for air before succumbing. Some perished instantaneously due to the acidic conditions while others took a bit longer to asphyxiate.
World-renowned fish pain specialist, Dr Lynne Sneddon from the University of Gothenburg, argues ferric sulphate, when exposed to fish, could trigger their pain receptors, known as nociceptors, and cause inflammation in their gills. She compares the immense suffering of these creatures to terrestrial animals, suggesting that such maltreatment would cause widespread public fury on land. “Undergoing such discomfort and ultimately death on such a massive scale would spark widespread public backlash,” she asserts.
It’s estimated that the incident led to the loss of about 2,000 fish, with a possibility of more casualties concealed by the downstream drift. Young fish, as small as 3cm, could have been part of the death toll. Notably, amongst the deceased were sizeable female eels, aged around 10 to 15 years, possibly heading towards the Sargasso Sea to procreate when they met their untimely demise.
The Enistymon facility relies on a 250-acre lake in the Burren, Lickeen, located a few kilometres away, for its drinking water supply. The extensive dependence of Ireland on surface water bodies such as rivers and lakes for potable water is noteworthy, especially when juxtaposed with many EU nations who primarily rely on groundwater.
The process of purifying water taken from lakes and rivers poses several challenges; it requires the removal of soil particles, sand, clay, and organic matter before it can undergo chlorination and distribution as drinking water. This is where ferric sulphate steps in, effectively binding to the debris and furnishing clean water. The leftover sludge, however, was freely disposed into water bodies until three decades ago. Current regulations categorise it as a waste product that must be responsibly handled under licencing conditions.
In 2014, when Irish Water took over the water treatment facilities from local authorities, it was revealed that the Ennistymon plant lacked a licence to unload waste into the river. The Environmental Protection Agency’s audit of the plant revealed several issues, the most pressing being its operation at 55 per cent over its maximum capacity.
Following a pollution incident in May, the EPA carried out an audit of the plant a week later and identified a range of issues. Among these were mechanical problems, dismal management, and a dearth of warning devices that could have notified staff about the malfunction in the waste treatment procedure. The plant failed to properly store and dispose of the waste off-site, while Clare County Council expressed concern to the EPA about the possibility of waste discharge into the Ballymacraven river during overflow periods. This concern materialised barely two weeks after the initial episode of fish mortality, on the 18th of May, when an individual notified the authorities about an unusual orange colouration in the river. The IFI confirmed that there was another waste spill, and the iron level was extremely high, menacing the aquatic ecosystem. Interestingly no dead fish were detected, possibly because the river had lost its fish populace a couple of weeks prior due to the first incident.
The Ballymacraven situation, termed an “ecological disaster” by Inland Fisheries Ireland’s legal representative, was brought before Ennis District Court last month. Uisce Éireann, with an annual budget of €1.3 billion, admitted to fault and was penalised with a fine of €10,000. Based on Uisce Éireann’s details, a €7.5 million overhaul of the plant is expected to be concluded within the year and waste is presently being disposed of on a daily basis. This ecological disaster has prompted locals to initiate a project, ‘Restore Ballymacraven River’. However, it is uncertain how long the river will take to revive, or even if such a revival is feasible.
The condition of Ballymacraven mirrors the results of a long history of insubstantial investments in water treatment facilities and a lax attitude towards safeguarding rivers and lakes irrespective of the damage caused. Nowadays, a number of water plants are under huge strain due to the ever-growing population. This explosion in population was a vital component of the government’s Project Ireland 2040 strategy, forecasted to add one million inhabitants in 20 years, and was supposed to be executed sustainably. However, the impending water and ecological crisis is a stark reminder of the unsustainable nature of this development.