Debate contribution: Lough Neagh Rescue Plan

Debate contribution by Mr Maurice Bradley on 13 February 2024.

MLA: Mr Maurice Bradley
Party at the time: Democratic Unionist Party
Date: 13 February 2024
Type: Debate contribution
Business: Private Members' Business
Heading: Lough Neagh Rescue Plan
Assembly identifier: Official Report component 4206443

Text

I add my congratulations to the Minister on taking up his new post. I look forward to working with him through the mandate. Several members have referred to the high level of phosphorus and nitrates in Lough Neagh and, indeed, the invasive species of zebra mussel and its ability to filter up to one litre of water per day. I have no intention of repeating those valid points. However, while we are, rightly, looking at improving the ecological and environmental state of the lough, it is important that we also look at what is going into Lough Neagh and what is coming out. Six major rivers feed the lough: the Ballinderry, the Moyola, the Sixmilewater, the Blackwater, the Maine and the Upper Bann. Only one river flows out: the Lower Bann. That wends its way through counties Antrim and Londonderry to the Barmouth between Castlerock and Portstewart, including through Coleraine, the principal town of the Causeway Coast and Glens. As someone who has had the privilege of fishing for white trout at Dougan's Bay in the tidal stretch of the Bann, fishing above the Cutts at the Loughan Island for salmon, including the Big Agivey and Wee Agivey rivers, and fishing at the beaches of Downhill, Castlerock and Portstewart for flounder and sea bass, I am all too aware of the debris that flows through the River Bann into the sea from Lough Neagh. That includes the irregular flow of water that is released from the lough during inclement weather and at times of high levels of water in the lough. Last year, there were 25 confirmed instances of algal bloom between the Lower Bann at Toome and the Barmouth at Castlerock and Portstewart. It is not just Lough Neagh that is affected but the Lower Bann corridor, which is affecting angling and tourism, especially at north coast bathing beaches. Everything waterborne that emerges from Lough Neagh flows along the Bann and out to sea. Therefore, nitrates and phosphates need to be prevented from entering the lough at source. Mr Speaker, when you were the AERA Minister, you initiated an ambitious tree planting scheme. We need to continue with that thought by planting riparian tree and vegetation cover along the rivers that enter Lough Neagh to catch some of the leachate from farmland and find a natural solution to the invasive species of zebra mussel, preferably a natural predator rather than a chemical solution. I add my support to the AERA Minister as he grapples with this ecological time bomb. I agree with others that addressing the problem needs cross-departmental support. I encourage the Minister to look, not just at the lough but at the waterways that feed into the lough and the one river that flows out, the Lower Bann. Eel fishing has been mentioned. I can remember when the ropes at the Cutts were black with elvers making their way upstream. That is no longer the case. Unfortunately, that needs to be looked into as well, hence the need to take a holistic approach to Lough Neagh and its associated waterways. I am happy to support the motion and the amendment.

523 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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