Questions still left unanswered

May 2008

PROTESTORS opposed to the disposal of cylinders containing hydrogen cyanide on the army rifle range in Manor Kilbride were left with more questions than answers after meeting with South Dublin County Council and Rentokil representatives.

Some two dozen people protested outside Rentokil offices on the Ballymount Road on Wednesday to voice their safety concerns over plans to burn off the harmful chemical at the army range.

A delegation from the committee against the disposal voted in last week met with South Dublin County Council official John Quinlivan and representatives from Rentokil in a two-hour meeting. But the delegation left still unsatisfied with the explanation they received.

Chairman Gerry O’Neill says they were unable to answer straightforward questions, and he also dismissed claims that the site is more than one kilometre from residential property.

That isn’t true. There are people living there well within that radius. They weren’t really able to supply us with the technical information we sought,’ he said.

Another member of the committee, local resident Anna Carroll, also happens to have a master’s degree in contaminated land and remediation, and found the council and Rentokil representatives lacking in information.

‘They weren’t able to tell us what exact temperature is needed to burn the chemical off. When we asked about the method being used all they could tell us is that the same method has been used in Maryland in the States. It’s never been carried out over here, or in Britain either, as far as we can tell.’