The Environmental Protection Agency is suing Aughinish Alumina, the Co Limerick-based manufacturing plant, for failure to inform the agency promptly of an accidental effluent discharge last May.
The Swiss-owned company manufactures alumina, the raw material for aluminium. It has received a summons claiming it breached its integrated pollution control licence by failing to notify the agency, as soon as was practicable, of an incident with the potential for environmental contamination. The company will be contesting the case, a spokesman said yesterday.
It faces a possible fine of up to €1,270 and/or up to 12 months imprisonment under the EPA Act if convicted at Rathkeale District Court next Thursday.
One of the biggest employers in the county, the company has a workforce of 450 people at the plant on Aughinish Island in the Shannon Estuary. It imports bauxite clay from west Africa and converts it to alumina for export to Britain, Norway and Germany.
On May 17th last year, up to 50 cubic metres of sodium aluminate in sodium hydroxide solution spilled when a pump failed and a bund overflowed, and some of this went into the Shannon Estuary.
Shortly after the incident a company representative apologised to the EPA for not notifying the agency and other relevant authorities immediately, instead of about 12 hours afterwards.
An emergency team cleaned up the spillage using suction bowsers, and a quantity of caustic-contaminated top soil was removed. At the time a company spokesman said the spillage was not a significant environmental incident.
A company report said "a small fraction" of the spillage had gone on to the estuary shoreline through a surface water outfall point.
When questioned by an EPA inspector as to why there was no monitoring of the estuary and the surface water outfall point, a company representative, Mr Liam Fleming said he did not see monitoring as an option at the time. He said he was concentrating on the clean-up and the investigation.
Meanwhile, the EPA is also investigating an incident at the plant on March 10th, when there was an "unprecedented" power failure for 40 minutes.
It resulting in a solution being blown in droplets on to the company's grounds and the emission of more alumina dust than normal.
The EPA received a complaint from a local farmer, Mr Liam Somers, about the appearance on March 11th of "tiny white spots" on the grass, foliage and cars in the Ballysteen area. The EPA has taken samples and is analysing the substance for Mr Somers.
Dr Kevin Kelleher, the Mid-Western Health Board's director of public health, said he had no direct involvement in the incident.
Mr Somers said there was still evidence of the substance on his farm. It had caused his grass to "burn" and made his 24 milking cows irritable. "The top inch of my grass is nearly gone," he said.
Mr Sean Garland, the plant's technical manager, said there was no reason to believe that any substance left the site on March 10th.
The company was also awaiting the EPA's analysis.
Mr Fleming told the EPA "a complete power failure in a high temperature/high pressure process plant is a significant event. This was the first in AAL's history."
The ESB is assisting the plant in its investigation.
"It appears that part of the protective system was too sensitive and inadvertently tripped both main supplies," Mr Fleming added.
Last year the EPA concluded a £4.2 million study of animal and human health problems in the Askeaton area.
It found no evidence that Alumina, two ESB stations on the estuary, and local industries were causing environmental problems.