THE STATE’S ENVIRONMENTAL watchdog has found a traffic cone used as a “makeshift filter” by Uisce Éireann to be “completely ineffective” at blocking sewage from entering a river near a popular Waterford beach.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) instructed Uisce Éireann, the state owned water company, to fix a septic tank which was releasing raw sewage and toilet paper into the River Mahon.

A member of the public flagged the issue in June, upon inspection the environmental watchdog found solids and rags in the River Mahon, as well as a smell of sewage.

The river is 700m upstream from the popular bathing spot Bunmahon Beach.

Uisce Éireann said the septic tank was operating above capacity, and confirmed they had installed a “makeshift filter” using a traffic cone to stop the flow of sewage.

The EPA inspected the filter and found it to be “completely ineffective”.

They said the cone did not stop solids and rags entering the river on a regular basis.

Sinn Féin TD for Waterford, Conor McGuinness, said the situation represents a wider pattern of rural neglect.

“This is a disgrace. The EPA report confirms what locals have known for years — the plant is overloaded, poorly maintained, and is discharging raw sewage into the River Mahon.

“The failure to fix this infrastructure is not only polluting the river and coastline, it’s also preventing new housing from being delivered for local families who want to stay and build their lives in Bunmahon,” he said.

He also said Uisce Éireann’s traffic cone solution was told the EPA was a “short-term, slapdash response” which shows how little regard the authorities have for rural communities.

McGuinness added: “It’s not good enough.”

In response to a request for comment sent by The Journal on the evening of Monday the 21st of July, Uisce Éireann said they are reviewing the recent EPA report on Bonmahon waste water treatment plant and will respond in due course.

They said: “We acknowledge recent discharges from the Bunmahon Septic tank at in May and June and understand that these matters are a source of concern for the community. We would like to assure the community that we are taking these reported issues very seriously will continue to engage with the EPA in relation to this matter.”

“In the interim, the local wastewater operations team will continue to carry out ongoing operations and maintenance work at the plant including regular desludging,” they added.

This article was updated on Tuesday the 22nd of July to include Uisce Éireann’s comment.