Earthwatch Highlight Disregard for County Wicklow's Environment

Wicklowtoday.com spoke with Alastair Galpin, recently in Arklow on a one-day stopover to draw public attention to Earthwatch and make people more aware of the various issues that concern us all. He explained to Wicklowtoday.com that the primary issues at the moment were drawing people's attention to climate change and its causes, and the ongoing debate concerning waste management. "Super-dumps are certainly not the way forward and are virtually impossible to manage with their associated litter spillage or overflow onto every nearby road in their direct proximity", explained Alastair.

Likewise the incineration debate seems to provide answers to all the wrong questions as highlighted in the edited Earthwatch article of a speech on waste management by Wicklow County Councillor Deirdre De Burca at a recent Green Party Convention. She points out that the representatives of Wicklow County Council seem happy to leave the responsibility of drafting the Wicklow

Drowning in Rubbish

Waste Management Plan virtually entirely to the engineering company M C O' Sullivans. In the extracts that followed she went on to highlight the apparent ignorance of some of the councillors regarding the damaging effects of the incinerators toxins.

In particular dioxins, which are amongst the most poisonous man-made chemicals, can accumulate in fat and milk eventually making their way into the human food chain. They are directly associated with the development of cancer in humans. As Deirdre De Burca's speech highlighted, public representatives have the moral responsibility to inform themselves comprehensively about issues that directly effect our environment and consequently our health.

Earthwatch's Ann Marie Cunningham, who deals with waste management issues, explained to Wicklowtoday.com that they make submissions to the various County Councils with recommendations on how waste management can be implemented in a more environmentally friendly way. These submissions are based on scientific research and point out the dangers of quick-fix solutions or uninformed waste mismanagement practices been applied to an already environmentally critical situation.

"While Wicklow County Council at least replied with a standard letter stating that they were in receipt of Earthwatch's communication, some Councils do not even reply", explained Ann Marie. However Earthwatch seems undaunted by the apparent lack of management relating to issues such as waste disposal. Instead it continues in its efforts to keep the general public informed of matters directly connected with our environment and health.