Minister for the Environment John Gormley has met residents living close to the former Irish Steel plant on Haulbowline island in Co Cork who have expressed fears over hazardous wastes found at the site.
At a meeting held at Leinster House this evening, Mr Gormley sought to assure locals that the site is safe despite claims that hazardous material has been discovered there.
Last week the Department of the Environment was accused of a cover-up concerning the extent of waste buried at the site after it was disclosed that an estimated 500,000 tonnes of waste are buried at former plant.
Mr Gormley said on Friday that consultants White Young Green were to begin a rigorous assessment of the site this week following "extensive unauthorised works by subcontractors of Hammond Lane Metal Company Ltd".
This assessment would involve analysis of soil, slag, dust, surface and ground water samples for all likely contaminants including heavy metals such as chromium, said Mr Gormley, who reiterated his commitment to dealing with the legacy issue of waste at the site.
Mr Gormley said it was "regrettable" that the unauthorised actions of a contractor engaged in necessary interim remedial works had brought such concern to local people.
"The residents from the area have legitimate concerns in relation to the Haulbowline site and I was glad to meet them this evening and to listen to their concerns firsthand," he added.
Mr Gormley confirmed that the former Irish Steel site has been monitored on a continuous basis since 2005 and said that this continues to be the case.
He added that areport carried out by White Young Green in 2005 would be released in a bid to reassure local residents.
"I want people to know that this challenging industrial legacy is being managed in a responsible fashion pending a decision on its future use," said Mr Gormley.
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