Lead Story: Threat to premier west coast shellfish ground

Shellfish producers in Clew Bay have told Inshore Ireland they are extremely concerned over proposals by Mayo County Council to discharge leachate from its Derrinumera landfill into Newport Bay, report Gillian Mills and Gery Flynn.

“The proposed discharge point is less than half a mile from several native oyster beds in the estuary of one of the country’s finest salmon rivers, the Burrishoole,” Alan Stoney, secretary of the Clew Bay Oyster Co-operative said.

According to Stoney, the intended mechanism to render the effluent ‘safe’ is to dilute it sufficiently with the water in Clew Bay.

“It would appear that Mayo County Council has not taken fully into account the possible long-term impact that this would have on the delicate marine ecosystem that exists.

“Most of the organisms, especially shellfish, are ‘bio accumulators’, i.e. they filter large volumes of water, removing material dissolved or suspended in the water. Then they lay this material down in their tissue as they grow.”

Since 1979, the Clew Bay Oyster Co-operative has produced thousands of tonnes of premium product. “This product is sought worldwide by consumers who rely on the knowledge that the fish they are eating is of the highest quality. This quality ultimately depends on one thing alone, the cleanliness of the water in Clew Bay.”

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