Landfill in Northern Ireland
Currently throughout Northern Ireland Landfill is the main method of waste disposal with 95% of municipal waste being disposed of in Landfill sites. However, Northern Ireland is running out of available sites for landfill, particularly in Belfast (as it is the most heavily populated area in the province).
Northern Ireland and the UK as a whole are facing heavy fines from the EU for not reaching environmentally friendly waste policy targets. Due to the lack of structure in local and regional government there has been no significant recycling policies brought into the rural areas of Northern Ireland and there has only recently been a move to integrate the whole of Northern Ireland into Recycling initiatives.
The impending legal action from the EU has led to the adoption of a Closure Plan at the Dargan Road Landfill Site.
‘There was such a wide abundance of available landfill sites and very poor legislation relating to how you could go about getting landfill sites therefore the reason why we have previously relied on landfill because it is cheap’, Martin Doherty, Head of Waste Management, Belfast City Council, 2000.
It is not possible to analyse the reasons of North Foreshore’s pending closure without discussing some of the relevant Legislation throughout the UK, Northern Ireland and Europe, as well as other important documents relating to Landfill and Waste Management that may have influenced the closure decision.
North Foreshore Landfill Site
Location
The North Foreshore is located just two miles north up the M2 motorway. The site is confined to the East and North by Belfast Lough and to the West by the M2 motorway and the Belfast to Larne railway connection which also forms a physical barrier to the neighbouring communities. Presently, the site is accessed from the Dargan Road/ Duncrue industrial estate, which is situated on the Southern portion of the site adjacent to Belfast Port.
Aerial picture showing layout of North Foreshore site.
History
Essentially, the Dargan Road Landfill site came into operation in 1958 and has subsequently continued to be a site identified for waste disposal since. Furthermore, “the demand for further space for waste disposal led to the expansion of the site and in 1973 the then Ministry of Development released a further 100 acres (40.5 hectares) to the North of the Dargan Road which is now recognised as the Southern part of the Northforeshore” (The North Foreshore: A Consultation Document, Belfast City Council, 2005).
Due to inadequate dumping facilities in the greater Belfast area, the Department for the Environment (DoE) in 1975 delegated a further 200 acres (81 hectares) to the council for waste dumping. However, in 1981 the landfill operations on the site were scaled back somewhat with all landfill ceasing by 2006.
Ownership
In essence, the North Foreshore landfill site was acquired by Belfast City Council from its previous owners the Department for Social Development in 2004. Belfast City Council made certain pledges and as such, “the council has undertaken responsibility to ensure that the site is properly managed and that adequate environmental protection is provided. It will be developed as an asset for the benefit of the city and its citizens” (The North Foreshore: A Consultation Document, Belfast City Council, 2005).
Access
Presently, the North Foreshore landfill site is accessed from the South at Dargan Road. The site also has good transport links in terms of relatively easy access to the M2 motorway providing a link to the North and South and the city centre.