One of the country’s largest foods producers is having its licence reviewed after persistent environmental breaches.
he Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking the rare step in relation to the Arrow Group meat and processed foods facility in Co Kildare, after more than 15 years of complaints about foul odours and excessive noise.
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Local residents complain they have been subjected to smells described as burning, sour, disgusting and sickening depending on a given day or wind direction.
The plant is on the name and shame list and has been prosecuted several times
They say noise is also an ongoing issue with plant, machinery and vehicles causing stress and disturbing sleep.
The HSE’s environmental health service has expressed concern and said the firm’s self-assessed compliance records appear “incongruent” with the number of complaints. The EPA has had the firm’s facility in the Maudlins Industrial Estate in Naas on its list of “national priority sites” for six years.
Despite being on the name-and-shame list and being prosecuted several times, the plant remains the subject of multiple fresh complaints that can number hundreds in a single year.
The facility regularly files assessment reports showing compliance with noise and odour regulations, but separate EPA inspections show breaches.
In a submission to the review, the HSE’s environmental health service expresses concern about the constant complaints and asks that the company be made explain its assessments.
“The World Health Organisation has established that noise is an important public health issue and can have negative impacts on health and well-being. It is a growing concern.
“And it would appear that the applicant’s 100pc compliance rate is incongruent with the number of odour complaints,” it added.
Arrow employs almost 1,000 people at the facility, which houses Dawn Farm Foods, the Culinary Food Group, and other group operations producing ingredients – mainly cooked meats – for sandwich makers, pizza chains, and other food outlets.
In a statement, the company said: “The Arrow Group is fully committed to achieving the highest possible environmental standards at its food production site in Naas.
“It continues a significant investment programme to that end, which benefits from co-operation with and guidance from the EPA.
“As a long-established enterprise and significant employer in Naas, Arrow Group has always placed a strong emphasis on being a good neighbour in the community.
"The Group’s commitment to continually improve outcomes will endure.”
But local residents do not accept their assurances.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, one resident said the smell meant that the windows of their home in an estate beside the facility had not been opened “in years”.
“The smells are overwhelming and the noise can be horrendous, depending on what they’re doing or what contract they’ve taken on,” said the resident.
Kildare County Council would not say if it was making a submission to the licence review, although the EPA wrote to officials to alert them to the process.
EPA licences are sometimes amended – usually in response to a change in a company’s operations – and it is understood only one has ever been revoked.
The EPA has received substantial documentation from Arrow regarding the review, but last week wrote to the firm seeking further information to be provided within four weeks.