THE OWNERS of a piggery who have been threatened with jail over their alleged failure to comply with court orders to clean up their facility may resolve their dispute with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the next month, the High Court was told yesterday.
President of the High Court Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns had last July given Rory and Monica O’Brien an opportunity to carry out all works at their piggery in Killickane, Mitchelstown, Co Cork, as required under a June 2011 court order. The works included emptying a significant amount of slurry from storage tanks.
The O’Brien piggery was one of the biggest in the State with more than 30,000 pigs, but it has now been destocked.
The judge gave the couple until August to comply after he was told the very wet weather of the early summer created difficulties as slurry removed from the tanks could only be spread in dry conditions.
The Environmental Protection Agency had applied for an attachment and committal-to-prison order against the O’Briens claiming, among other matters, they had failed to empty slurry tanks which leaked into the ground water system.
Counsel for the agency told Mr Justice Kearns yesterday that despite the adjournment last July, the 2011 orders had still not been complied with.
Following discussions, counsel for the EPA said proposals had been drawn up between the parties, which would need to be put into writing and considered by the agency.
Mr Justice Kearns granted an adjournment for four weeks on the basis that constructive discussions were taking place.