The conviction and fining of a Roscommon dairy plant for environmental breaches was an important endorsement of the principles of the Environmental Protection Agency. Aurivo dairy co-op was fined €350,000 for environmental breaches at their Ballaghaderreen plant which led to a foul odour engulfing the town, forcing residents indoors. The charges related to foul odours emanating from the plant that summer, discharge into the nearby River Lung and the failure to notify the EPA and Inland Fisheries Ireland.
The EPA say these convictions and the substantial fines imposed are an important endorsement of the "polluter pays" principle. The strategy states that polluters are held financially accountable for their actions, that they do not profit from illegal activity and that they do not gain a competitive advantage over law-abiding operators. Speaking to the Joe Finnegan Show, Senior Inspector in the EPA, Mick Henry, says the company invested significant funds in the facility in the end to tackle the issues:
