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There is a lakeside life preserver mined at the Ballyneety quarry in Limerick.
The buoy is attached to a support that says: “Closed area. Do not swim in the quarry. ”
Obviously the warning is ignored so someone thought it best to put a buoy there as a last resort. Another sign says “Danger in deep water” and another “Beware of obstructions underwater.”
What is completely lacking in the lake is any effort to make it inaccessible.
There are steep rocks around most of it, and avoiding entry wouldn’t be too difficult.
Over the years, people have commented on the lake’s attraction online.
On the Reddit message board, one poster mentioned swimming in it and another asked if there were any fish there.
“No, just a lone diver, which I initially thought was the Lockness monster (sic) when I saw the moving bubbles.”
Another wrote: “Apparently a great place to swim.”
The answer: “The blue color of quarries in Ireland is generally caused by copper leached from stones and is not indicative of water quality and may hide hazards. Quarries are among the most dangerous places to swim. ”
The Ballyneety quarry is about 11 km from Limerick city. Operations at the facility ceased in September 2010. A condition of the planning permit at the quarry owned by Roadstone was that the area be restored once operations ceased.
However, the whole place has the strange quality of having been abandoned overnight in a hurry. To that extent, it has the appearance of a setting in a dystopian movie.
The quarry is about 2 km from the town of Ballyneety. It is nestled between hills and has a lot in common with at least dozens of similarly abandoned quarries across the country.
The main building is slowly crumbling. Local environmentalist John McInerney, who has worked as an industrial engineer, says the building is full of asbestos. Windows are broken, an office chair overturned.
Outside, gorse bushes cut through the concrete. The stacks of blocks are placed on an asphalt platform.
Beyond that, stone mountains pile up here and there, again giving the impression that one day a whistle blew and everyone ran away.
A bunker, where workers took refuge when explosives exploded in new rock, is intact. There is a sign that says CCTV cameras are operational, but the cameras certainly don’t appear to be in use.
Then there is a rope tied to a tree that grows halfway up the slope at the edge of the quarry grounds. Young people who come here use the rope to descend and seek adventure.
Part of that adventure is on the lake, which can be accessed from one side, next to a steep rock face, from which stones often fall, some as large as pumpkins. Swimming and diving in quarry lakes is common and very dangerous in a country where there are abandoned quarries.
“People come here for the adrenaline rush,” says John McInerney. “The last time I was here, there was a plastic barrel that looked like children were using it for fun at the lake.
“They see the water, it looks very good, as if it were the Mediterranean, but it is very dangerous.
In July of last year, two brothers drowned in a quarry in Tipperary. In 2018, two 15-year-olds drowned in another Co Clare quarry.
One of the reasons the local authority may not have done anything about such a dangerous place is that officially the city council does not even know that work stopped here 10 and a half years ago.
“The council has not been informed that the quarry is resolved and, therefore, we have not followed up on the remediation,” a council statement read.
Officially, the abandoned quarry is not abandoned.
This is also the position of Roadstone.
“While production activity at Ballyneety was suspended in 2010 following a decline in construction activity, it remains a long-term source of essential materials for future construction and infrastructure projects,” according to a company statement.
Ballyneety’s license to operate Ballyneety expired in 2013. It is difficult to imagine the quarry complex being renovated, particularly as removing asbestos would be a considerable job.
The planning permit also stipulates that the landscape must be restored. But if, officially, the quarry is not resolved, then the restoration must wait until the official position changes.
The quarry was opened in 1969 and was operational for the next 41 years. In 2006, a new planning request was made to expand the mine and for the retention planning permit on some already completed works.
This was granted by the Limerick County Council, but appealed by various parties, including Limerick TD Willie O’Dea.
An Bord Pleanála commissioned an inspector’s report. The inspector determined that there was a possible environmental damage in question, which is why an Environmental Impact Study was required.
Finally, the inspector recommended planning, also noting that “the quarry in question is run by a highly reputable and experienced company” (Roadstone).
In its 2007 ruling, An Bord Pleanála stated: “This permit is for a period of six years from the date of this order. No further extraction will be allowed without a prior grant of planning permission and the restoration of the site will be completed to the satisfaction of the planning authority within one year after the cessation of extraction works. ”
The ruling included a provision for funds to be made available to the Limerick County Council to ensure restoration work is completed.
“Before the start of development, the developer must submit to the planning authority a cash deposit, surety bond or other guarantee to ensure the provision and satisfactory completion of works, including landscaping.
“The form and amount of the guarantee will be those agreed between the planning authority and the developer or, in the event of non-compliance, it will be sent to the board for determination.
“Reason: To ensure the satisfaction of the completion of the works, including the landscaping.”
As noted above, no restoration work has been done. The quarry is as it was 10 and a half years ago when work ceased, or was officially “suspended.”
Businesses, even reputable ones, sometimes don’t comply with the law.
This outcome was anticipated in the planning resolution by submitting a bond with the local authority, which could be used in the event of a default by Roadstone.
Except no bond was posted to the Limerick council. This was confirmed by a spokesperson. In fact, the council did not even know that the quarry had been resolved.
“The responsibility for restoring the landscape rests with the company that operated the quarry,” according to the Limerick City and County Council.
When asked if the city council had persecuted the company for the restoration of the site, the answer was that “the company has a responsibility to ensure that the regulations are followed.”
Limerick County and City Council also confirmed that they had not received any complaints about the quarry.
This raises the question of whether the authority only acts on potential planning and security issues when it receives a complaint.
The abandoned quarry also gives rise to environmental problems, both in terms of hazardous material and landscape restoration.
The Environmental Protection Agency says these matters are not within its purview.
A statement issued to the The EPA said any environmental concerns regarding a quarry should be reported to the appropriate council.
“At this point, the complainant should contact EPA, whose role will be to determine whether the council has met its statutory responsibilities in addressing the issue.
When it comes to Roadstone, no problem and everything has been done responsibly and in accordance with the law. “Roadstone complies with all relevant planning, environmental, health and safety and other regulatory conditions in its quarries,” the company statement read.
It also notes: “Roadstone has continued to actively manage the quarry since 2010 and 24-hour monitored CCTV and other security measures remain in place.”
CCTV cameras were seen on a recent visit to the site, but they appeared to be out of use. Despite a presence on the site for more than two hours on that occasion, there was no response from any security agency. The main gate is bricked up, but access to the complex is extremely easy and local farmers even use a corner to store silage.
John McInerney has been examining the background of the quarry and the state in which it has been in recent years.
Kieran Cummins, who created the environmental group Eco Advocacy, is not surprised by the state of Ballyneety both in terms of non-compliance with planning conditions and abandonment. For the past five years, he has examined planning and regulatory issues around quarries across the country.
“There seems to be something in the way local authorities handle planning when it comes to these quarries,” he says.
“I know of two cases in Co Meath near me where people built houses without planning permission and the city council threw the kitchen sink at them, and that’s like a pea in a place the size of a front yard.
“However, quarries, whether they are planning problems or unauthorized developments, seem to be treated differently.”
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