A SERIES OF equipment failures that led to sewage from the Macroom Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) flowing directly into the River Sullane in Co Cork was “like something from the Keystone Cops” according to Judge Andrew Cody who heard the case at a recent sitting of Macroom District Court.

Uisce Éireann and engineering company Glanua Ireland were both fined €4,000, in a prosecution brought by Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) over two incidents of effluent being discharged into the River Sullane last year.

Both the accused pleaded guilty to a single charge of permitting deleterious matter to fall into waters.

They were given four months to pay and ordered to pay €2,354 in legal costs and expenses.

Solicitor for IFI Vincent Coakley said that though the two incidents occurred on separate dates they were part of “ongoing issues” at the treatment plant in 2024.

The court heard that Uisce Éireann had engaged Glanua to deliver a €21 million upgrade of the WWTP in 2023 and the works were expected to be completed in 2026.

As part of the upgrade scheme Glanua also took over the operation of the plant for the duration of the works.

Giving evidence IFI senior environmental officer Michael McPartland told the court that he investigated a report from a member of the public in April 2024 and found a “significant amount” of sewage fungus in the river immediately downstream from the WWTP but none immediately upstream.

He said that he contacted Uisce Éireann and the matter was addressed and “cleared up” a short time later.

On June 11 he responded to another report and again found effluent in the river.

McPartland said that a “significant plume” could be observed “going down the river for a considerable distance.”

Samples were taken as well as photographs of the river pollution. Later analysis showed the discharge had exceeded Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) licence limits for various parameters by between 20 and 35 times the permissible level.

Another incident was reported on July 5 where samples showed levels up to 45 times the licence limits and on a fourth occasion on July 17 the limits were exceeded by up to 20 times the limits.

McPartland said there had been “ongoing difficulties” at the plant in 2024. He said that previously although “dated” the Macroom WWTP had been well managed but the issues in 2024 were “on a different scale” to anything that had happened before.

He said that it was acknowledged that the ongoing works were intended to address such issues and said that in his opinion the issues that occurred were down to “poor management over a period of time rather than a deliberate action.”

Aoife Sheehan BL acting for Uisce Éireann said that her client was pleading guilty in relation to the incident on July 11 and had been fully cooperative.

She said that Uisce Éireann had inherited ageing wastewater infrastructure from local authorities across the country in 2014 and the €21 million investment at Macroom would ensure safe, clean water for up to 8,000 people.

She added that the effluent that went into the river had been treated and was not raw sewage. McPartland said that though the material had been treated it was actually “worse than raw sewage” it was effectively sludge going into the river.

Denise Mulcahy BL for Glanua Ireland Ltd said that the company were pleading guilty to a charge in relation to the incident on July 5. She said that her client was managing “end of life” infrastructure while at the same time refurbishing and upgrading the plant.

She said two of the three aeration tanks at the plant had failed and a temporary replacement had been sourced but ultimately proved to be ineffective.

Judge Cody said: “This was a national authority pumping sewage in to a river, why did it happen?” He said that the explanation of the the temporary fix for the aeration tank sounded like it “was done on the cheap.”

He added: “What concerns me is this seems to have been done in a somewhat haphazard manner. When something went wrong all that was available was outdated equipment. It sounds like the Keystone Cops, one thing failing after another.”