Residents urged to stop using contaminated water in wells

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has advised Offaly residents to discontinue using water from 12 private wells after tests recorded contamination by heavy metals including Chromium VI - a lethal carcinogenic.

T&J Standish Sawmills Ltd, based in the Aghancon Valley, about six miles from Roscrea, Co Tipperary, has previously acknowledged that Chromium VI which the EPA detected in local groundwater, came from its production processes.

Tests carries out by the company's own consultants have now also recorded the presence in local wells of polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PaHs) - carcinogenic and genotoxics of the kind which are monitored and regulated in urban air, vehicle and industrial emissions.

Those affected by the EPA advice include the mother and family of the Minister of State for Finance, Mr Tom Parlon. Mr Parlon's mother's home is supplied with water from one of the wells affected, as is a farm run by his brother Mr Joe Parlon.

The local community is to meet members of the Midland Health Board, Offaly County Council and the EPA at a public meeting called to address the issue in Aghancon tonight.

The sawmills has been the subject of numerous EPA investigations relating to breaches of its Integrated Pollution Control licence, going back to 1998.

The Irish Times revealed in January last that Chromium VI - the chemical made infamous by the film Erin Brockovich - had been discovered by the EPA's own tests in local water. Chromium VI, can remain in soil and on river beds for long periods and is notoriously difficult to remove.

The company has, however, been co-operating with the EPA on improving safety standards and a planning application for its business is currently with Bord Pleanála. Efforts to contact the company yesterday were unsuccessful. Mr Tom Standish previously told The Irish Times that the pollution had ceased.

According to EPA documents, seen by The Irish Times, the breaches of the sawmills pollution control licence included the release of a number of chemicals - including quantities of Chromium VI and copper in excess of permitted limits - to surrounding surface water, the nearby Fuarawn River, and the contamination of a number of local wells. A testing report noted that both Chromium VI and copper were constituents of timber preservative.

Mr Joe Parlon said yesterday there was enormous concern in the area, after the EPA advice became known. He said the locals had been advised not to use the water for anything other than flushing the toilet. However he estimated that about five of the 12 wells concerned supplied water for cattle. Of the houses whose water supply comes from affected wells, Mr Parlon said the greatest concern was for babies and young children.

In a statement issued last night Mr Tom Parlon said the test results were now "a matter of serious concern".