'Full support' from Lough Neagh owner and minister for blue-green algae action plan... but it remains stalled

Andrew Muir made the comments after a meeting with the Earl of Shaftesbury Nick Ashley-Cooper on Wednesday morning about the return of toxic scum to much of the lough.

The plan which both the minister and the earl endorse has yet to be published, because the eight-minister, four-party Executive cannot agree on its contents.

Noxious blooms covered large parts of the lough last summer and also affected other waterways and beaches, right up to the north coast.

The algae has returned this year – “with a vengeance” according to Gerry Darby of the Lough Neagh Partnership, which has been set up to try and help the lough.

Mr Muir said the meeting with the earl was “very constructive”.

“I was pleased to hear that Nick Ashley-Cooper is fully supportive of the Lough Neagh Action Plan which is currently under consideration by my executive colleagues and we are both hopeful that agreement is secured as soon as possible,” the minister said in a statement.

“The plan contains real, science-led and practical actions that can set us on a course towards long-term rehabilitation of water quality in Lough Neagh.”

And the earl said in a statement: “I had a constructive discussion with the minister on the issues facing Lough Neagh.

“We discussed the importance of his Lough Neagh Report and Action Plan which I hope will be approved by the Northern Ireland Executive as soon as possible.

“I reiterated my commitment to work with his team and other stakeholders to find solutions, as I firmly believe that we need to work together to secure the lough's long-term future.”

A governmental briefing paper written last September about the problem found that essentially its likely causes were runoff from farms, sewage, and possibly climate change.

The first two involve the addition of extra nitrate and phosphate into the water.

Nitrate levels are known to have spiked in the lough in recent years, though phosphate levels have not changed that dramatically.

The algae (which, despite its name, is actually a bacteria) thrives in warmer water, and the briefing paper found that surface temperature at the lough has increased from under 10C in the early 1970s to between 12C and 13C today.

This factor is made worse by the fact that “algal blooms absorb sunlight, making water even warmer and promoting more blooms”.

The spread of the invasive zebra mussel species is also understood to have played a role in the blooms, as they have made the water clearer, allowing more sunlight to penetrate, stimulating more algal photosynthesis.

The blooms are poisonous to animals and humans and suck oxygen out of the water, which can suffocate fish.

Minister Muir, who also has responsibility for the environment, has developed an as-yet-unpublished action plan with 37 points, 17 of which need full executive support.

For example, restricting the use of chemical fertilisers on grasslands would need executive approval.

The lough is in the ownership of the earl, though part of current discussions involve putting it in “community” hands.