Menu
Irish Wildlife Trust calls for prosecution and urgent action to address agricultural pollution
5 June 2026
The Irish Wildlife Trust has expressed outrage following confirmation of a devastating fish kill in the River Glyde, Co. Louth, where more than 20,000 fish have died, including Minnows, Sticklebacks, Salmon, Eels, Brown Trout, Roach, and Pike. Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has confirmed that the source of the pollution was an agricultural discharge.
Commenting on the incident, Oisín Ó Néill, Nature Advocacy Officer with the Irish Wildlife Trust, said:
“What happened on the River Glyde is an environmental catastrophe and an absolute disgrace.
More than 20,000 fish have been killed and a river ecosystem has been devastated. The source has been identified as an agricultural discharge. Those responsible must be held fully accountable and prosecution must follow.”
For anyone concerned with the health of Ireland’s rivers, fisheries, and natural environment, the scale of this incident is appalling. Unfortunately, it is not surprising.
Ireland’s rivers remain under intense pressure from agricultural pollution, particularly nutrient runoff associated with intensive livestock farming. Despite repeated warnings from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) about declining water quality, Ireland continues to operate under the EU Nitrates Derogation, allowing significantly higher livestock stocking rates than the standard EU limit.
The consequences are increasingly evident. EPA assessments show that around half of Ireland’s rivers and two-thirds of its estuaries are polluted, with agricultural nitrogen among the principal causes. Communities across Ireland have repeatedly identified clean water as a top environmental priority, yet river quality continues to deteriorate.
The River Glyde disaster is not an isolated incident. A major IFI report on fish kills between 1969 and 2022 found that agriculture was the single largest cause, accounting for 23% of all recorded fish kills nationwide.
What happened on the River Glyde is symptomatic of a wider, systemic failure to protect Ireland’s waterways.
Ó Néill added “This incident is the predictable consequence of a system that continues to place the economic interests of intensive agricultural production ahead of the health of our rivers.
Ireland holds the shameful distinction of being the only country in the European Union still operating under a nitrates derogation, permitting higher levels of agricultural pollution than are allowed elsewhere in the EU.
The Irish public overwhelmingly support clean water and healthy rivers. Yet they are forced to watch powerful agricultural lobby groups travel to Brussels to demand exemptions from regulations designed to protect our environment. The price is being paid by Ireland’s rivers with worsening water quality, repeated fish kills, and freshwater ecosystems pushed closer to ecological collapse.
Unless Ireland takes decisive action to tackle agricultural pollution and restore freshwater ecosystems, incidents like this will continue to happen.”
ENDS
Media Contact: Oisín Ó Néill, IWT Nature Advocacy Officer, oisin@iwt.ie
Image: Deceased salmon recovered from River Glyde by IFI (Inland Fisheries Ireland) staff
If you value our work, please consider supporting us by becoming a member