Stormont debate hears that Lough Neagh crisis is 'a national emergency'

Sinn Féin National Chairperson Declan Kearney MLA has said Lough Neagh has become a national emergency which demands a joint political priority from this assembly and the Irish government.

The South Antrim MLA was speaking during a debate on Saving Lough Neagh.

Declan Kearney said:

“Throughout this summer the catastrophic pollution consuming Lough Neagh, has become even more extreme.

“The biodiversity and ecological wellbeing of the Lough face an existential threat, as do the commercial fishing industry, the tourism offering, and the historical heritage, associated with Lough Neagh.

“The total termination of eel fishing for the 2025 season graphically illustrates how this deepening crisis has devastated livelihoods and economic activity along the lough shore.

“The repercussions for local fishermen, their families and eel exports, and wider lough shore community is incalculable.

“As we work to address the ecological catastrophe in Lough Neagh, immediate supports are now needed to secure the tradition of commercial fishing and the livelihoods of those who depend on it.

“The intensified pollution of this year must be met with decisive, coordinated action with all relevant stakeholders, including the Fishermen’s Co-Operative Society and the Lough Neagh Partnership.

“The crisis in Lough Neagh should be above party politics.

“We need political agreement, not divergence, in our collective efforts to address this unprecedented ecological emergency.

“Lough Neagh is no longer a regional crisis; it is a national emergency which demands a joint political priority from this assembly and the Irish government.

“Our response requires North– South intergovernmental action, with a dedicated focus from both the Irish and British Government. That should be an agreed position from within our Assembly and Executive.”

Meanwhile, it has emerged that toxins have been found in the flesh of some fish in Lough Neagh for the first time, according to the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

However, it said commercially harvested fish from the lough remained safe to eat and there was no change to advice for recreational anglers.

The FSA has sampled and tested various species of fish since 2023 to determine the levels and types of the toxins that may be present due to blue-green algae.

Blue-green algae is a collection of microscopic organisms that are naturally present in lakes and streams but, under certain conditions, can become abundant and form large blooms that discolour the water.

The algae has been detected more than 100 times across Northern Ireland since the start of the year, with the majority of sightings in Lough Neagh and the Lower Bann, as well as Lough Erne.

The FSA said toxicologists had confirmed that fish like bream, trout, perch, pollan and eel were safe to eat.

“The latest results show that some toxins have been detected in the viscera of the fish and, for the first time, in the flesh of some fish," it said in a statement.

“These results, compared to the Tolerable Daily Intake (TDI) levels set by the World Health Organisation, are not a health concern."

Chief scientific advisor for the FSA, Prof Robin May, said recreational anglers should continue to "think about where you're fishing and the fish you're catching".

“Apply the normal kind of rules you would, so if the fish looks sick or certainly if it’s floating or something, leave it where it is," he added.

“Once you’ve caught a healthy fish, even if it's away from the algal bloom, I would say take extra care, all the care you would normally, but perhaps even more to rinse that fish well and to remove the viscera cautiously before you eat it.

“If you do all of that then those fish remain completely safe to eat.”

Kathleen McBride, CEO of the Fishermen's Co-operative, said the FSA findings were ‘good news’ for fishing on Lough Neagh

The Fishermen's Co-operative, the organisation responsible for marketing Lough Neagh fish products, welcomed the FSA's assessment that the fish were safe to eat.

The organisation’s chief executive, Kathleen McBride, said “we are led by the science - the science says they're perfectly healthy to eat”.

Ms McBride said the co-op “always knew our fish were healthy, because the Food Standards Agency had already declared that”.

But she added the findings "just gives that extra bit of rubber-stamping" that should reassure people there are no risks in consuming fish from the lough.

Ms McBride admitted that since the blue-green algae problems were first reported, her organisation has had ‘real big challenges marketing our product’.

“It’s not helpful for us as a co-op to have the blue-green algae always in the media,” she said.

“But again, this wee bit of news from the Food Standards Agency today has really helped.”