Cork anglers ‘devastated’ as river fish kill causes cancellation of prestigious competition
It is feared at least 5,000 fish, including salmon, trout, and lamprey were killed along a 4km stretch of the Allow, in north Cork, an important tributary of the Blackwater.
Investigations into the kill are under way, with several State bodies involved, including Inland Fisheries Ireland and Uisce Éireann. The water utility is investigating a spillage at its treatment plant in Freemount.
The Kanturk and District Trout Anglers Association said it was “heartbreaking to see a river that has been nurtured so much to be absolutely decimated” and it was “devastated on multiple fronts by this shocking incident”.
It said the Allow had seen major investment from the EU and the club had been instrumental in securing this funding.
“The projects had bought the farmers and other stakeholders and the environment into complete unison and the river habitat was going from strength to strength,” it said.
The Kanturk and District Trout Anglers Association added it had been scheduled to host the Trout Anglers Federation of Ireland’s All-Ireland River Championship this weekend but this “celebration of our sport and a positive impact to the local economy is now gone”.
At O’Flaherty’s Bridge, it said “all aquatic life was decimated and hundreds of dead trout, coarse fish, lampreys etc could be seen from the bridge”.
“Further up at Freemount Bridge in the vicinity of the Irish Water treatment plant, there was no sign of life whatsoever either living or dead, as if any history of life was erased from the river,” it said.
It comes as a new report from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said more action was needed after it was found there had been no significant change in any of the water quality indicators for Ireland’s rivers, lakes, estuaries and groundwaters in 2023.
It found water quality in Ireland was not improving, and nutrient levels remained too high in a large proportion of water bodies.
Furthermore, nitrogen pollution remained a significant issue in the east, south-east and south of the country according to the EPA.
It said 42% of rivers and 20% of groundwater sites all have nitrogen levels that are “unsatisfactory”, and this could be primarily attributed to intensive agricultural activities on freely draining soils in these areas.
“It is disappointing to report that our water quality is not improving,” the director of the EPA’s Office of Evidence and Assessment Dr Eimear Cotter said.
“While there are initiatives happening nationally, measures to address water quality are not being implemented at the scale or pace required. The quality of our water bodies will not improve until nutrient levels are reduced in areas where they are elevated.”
Dr Cotter added the EPA findings made clear more action was needed to achieve our legally binding water quality objectives.
“It is imperative that the next River Basin Management Plan, which is now over two years late, is published without further delay,” she said.
