The High Court has directed Patrick Merlehan to carry out remediation works at his waste site in Newtown, Moone, after finding that waste stored there posed risks to the environment and human health. The court left the wording of the final order, the deadlines for the work and costs for further submissions from the parties.
Kildare County Council brought the proceedings under sections 57 and 58 of the Waste Management Act 1996. It alleged that Merlehan was accepting and holding waste without planning permission, a waste permit or a waste licence, and sought orders to stop the activity and remediate the site.
In a judgment delivered electronically on 24 February 2022, Mr Justice Barr found that Merlehan owned the site, was responsible for operations there and had no relevant planning permission, waste permit or waste licence. The court was satisfied that he had accepted and was holding waste on the land. Merlehan did not seriously dispute that he held waste there.
The court relied on reports and evidence from the council’s officers, consultant geologist and hydrogeologist Cecil Shine, and a senior assistant chief fire officer. Shine’s reports described hazardous, potentially hazardous and non-hazardous materials, including oil, asbestos sheeting and contaminated soil. The evidence also included observations of waste burning. The court found the materials, in the condition shown, created risks to the environment and human health.
Merlehan told the court he had stopped accepting waste after an interim injunction in November 2019. He said he had asked companies that deposited material to remove it, and that one had done so. He accepted the broad thrust of Shine’s reports and the photographs, but disputed contamination and risk to groundwater. He said he hoped to resolve the remaining waste with the council.
The court directed remediation in line with options B and D in Shine’s report of 15 June 2020. The council had submitted that these options would require hazardous material to be removed in the short term, with further disposal, partial removal and partial restoration. The judge said the measures were necessary to eliminate environmental risk and were fair and proportionate. The court did not set the completion periods or settle the final order in this judgment; it invited written submissions on those terms, costs and any other matters within two weeks.