'Internship Position for Environmental Science/Earth Science/Hydrogeology/Geology Graduate for 1 year'

A non-paid Internship Position for an Environmental Science/Earth Science/Hydrogeology/Geology graduate for 1 year's duration will become available over the next 2 weeks. An MSc. graduate is preferable. The job will be approximately 75% office based and 25% field based. Office work will include environmental desk study, BH & TP log preparation, drawing preparation using autocad, laboratory data collation, input and analysis, report drafting, etc. Field work to include site investigation, trial pitting and drilling supervision, groundwater and surface water monitoring, air & noise monitoring, etc. Only graduates with a genuine interest in pursuing a career in environmental consultancy should apply.  Work experience in a number of our service areas is guaranteed. Please send detailed curriculum vitae hardcopy to Mulroy Environmental, 30 Lisroland View, Knockbridge, Dundalk, County Louth or email to ptmulroy@mulroyenvironmental.ie.

'Appropriate Due Diligence Of Brownfield Sites in Ireland –
In The Current Market'

Padraic Mulroy of Mulroy Environmental gave a presentation to CMG Events' 'Contaminated Land Conference 2012' which was held on the 16^th May 2012 in the Royal Marine Hotel, Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin. To date Ireland has no national soil protection policy nor does it have any national soil quality and/or remediation standards. There is as yet no dedicated regulatory regime providing guidance on the identification, assessment or remediation of brownfield sites. In effect, the regulation of contaminated land in Ireland is a ‘Non Liquet’ or legal Lacuna (i.e. a gap or void).

In an inventory of contaminated land sites carried out by the Irish EPA in 1999 and presented in a CARACAS publication, the number of contaminated land sites in Ireland was conservatively estimated at a relatively modest 2,000 to 2,500. This number was derived from an inventory of contaminated land sites in the petroleum retail sector, at various industrial sites, at closed landfill sites, timber treatment yards, scrap yards, railway yards and former gasworks sites. In comparison, the number of contaminated land sites in the UK is estimated at possibly over 100,000. It is stated that the number of brownfield sites or facilities with contaminated land legacies in Ireland is significantly less in Ireland than those of most other more industrialized European countries such as the UK, due to Ireland’s relative late arrival into the industrial age.

The Northern Ireland Environment Agency carried out an inventory of potentially contaminated land and have stated in 2011 that they have indentified a number in excess of 14,000 sites. This number was revised upwards from 12,000 in 2009. Mulroy Environmental carried out an 'in-house' inventory of key industrial sectors. This in-house inventory suggests that the NIEA contaminated land database number is correct. As such, it is likely that the Rep. of Ireland has over twice the number of potentially contaminated sites as that of Northern Ireland i.e. >30,000.

Padraic addresses current practices in pre-purchase Due Diligence work in Ireland particularly desk study (i.e. historic mapping reviews, on-line data sources, ordnance survey data gaps, etc), site walkover practices, Conceptual Site Modelling, preliminary site investigation design and implementation and generic and detailed quantitiative risk assessment procedures.

Padraic addresses the current over reliance on 'dig and dump' solutions to contaminated land remediation projects and the lack of expertise within local authorities in addressing the redevelopment of brownfield sites.  He addresses the current waste licensing system and the need for a waste licence where a linked soil managment process is proposed. Padraic also compares the cost of waste licence applications in the south to those in the north and address the number of waste licences applied for to date in the Rep. of Ireland.

The presentation can be downloaded here or, you can view it below.

'Contaminated Land in Ireland - A Consultant's Perspective'

Padraic Mulroy, of Mulroy Environmental gave a presentation to the Scottish Contaminated Land Forum (SCLF) on the 8^th September, 2011 at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow. The  subject of the presentation was 'Contaminated Land in Ireland -  A Consultants Perspective'.  

The issue of historic contaminated land is one which in Ireland we have managed, insofar as it has been possible to do so, to avoid directly addressing. There is no definition of contaminated land within the Irish legislature. Other EU member states have chosen individual methods of addressing this issue e.g. the UK Environmental Protection Act 1990, Part 11A in the UK.

To date Ireland has no national soil protection policy nor does it have any national soil quality and/or remediation standards. There is as yet no dedicated regulatory regime providing guidance on the identification, assessment or remediation of brownfield sites. In effect, the regulation of contaminated land in Ireland is a ‘Non Liquet’ or legal Lacuna (i.e. a gap or void).

The presentation can be downloaded here or, you can view it below. The conference programme which involved 12 presentations can be downloaded here.

'Planning Permission for Waste Transfer Station in Thurles'

Mulroy Environmental, working with Mcardle Doyle Consulting Engineers Ltd secured planning permission for a 3,600 tonnes per annum waste transfer station for O'Dwyer Skip Hire t/a Envirobin at Cabragh Business Park, Ballycurrane, Thurles, Co Tipperary.

The proposed development will include a change of use for the existing warehouse building, offices, and wholesale timber yard to a domestic/ commercial/ non-hazardous industrial waste transfer station and dry recycling facility to include a new surface water attenuation with waste water interceptor, rain water harvesting system, a commercial vehicle weighbridge, a new public civic amenity recycling facility, signage and planting.

Mulroy Environmental carried out a site suitability assessment and processed a detailed environmental report and revised drawings to comply with a request for further information by North Tipperary County Council.

Planning permission was granted by north North Tipperary County Council on the 23/03/11. This decision, however was appealed by a 3^rd party to An Bord Pleanala on the 27^th April 2011.

'Contaminated Land in Ireland - A Consultants Perspective'

Padraic Mulroy, of Mulroy Environmental recently published an article entitled 'Contaminated Land in Ireland -  A Consultants Perspective' in the Chartered Institute of Water and Environmental Management's (CIWEM) Global Contaminated Land Network - E-Newsletter.

The article can be viewed here or, you can view the CIWEM E-Newsletter here.

'Mulroy Environmental - Review of BS10175 - Code of Practice for the Investigation of Contaminated sites'

Mulroy Environmental, as part of its membership of the British Land Reclamation Society (BLRS) is participating in the review of Draft British Standard BS10175 - Code of Practice for the Investigation of Contaminated sites. It is hoped that the new draft will:

• Make consistent with other standards, good practice industry guidance and legislation issued since 2000;
• Remove reference to out-dated references, legislation, standards etc;
• Reflect current organisations holding information, or who need to be consulted. Provide up-to-date contact details;
• Include Scottish and Northern Irish legislation, bodies, regimes;
• Reflect developments in investigation practices and techniques; and
• Updated bibliography.

 www.blrs.org

'Knockbridge Weather Update, Friday 3^rd December'

Mulroy Environmental HQ is enduring very cold weather conditions. We had our Meterological Station out to assess the latest temperature and pressure trends in the weather and it does not look good. At 14:00 today, it was a healthy 'Siberianesque' -0.4^oC and 1002hpa with no real sign of the pressure dropping. Regular snowfalls dont bode well for next week.

'Padraic Mulroy accepted to The Expert Witness Directory of Ireland'

Padraic Mulroy of Mulroy Environmental has recently been added to the 'Expert Witness Directory of Ireland'.  The Irish Expert Witness Register is an association recognised by the Bar Council of Ireland. This is a comprehensive and reliable list of expert witnesses working in Ireland and Northern Ireland and is published jointly between Round Hall and Sweet & Maxwell. Admission to the register requires references from practicing solicitors and/or barristers for competent work completed in the past 3 years (i.e. production of affidavits and/or technical reports and provision of expert witness services in court).

www.expertwitnessireland.info

'EPA's Risk Based Methodology on Enforcement'

Mary Mc Gardle of Mulroy Environmental recently gave a presentation on the EPA's Risk Based Methodology on Enforcement. The presentation gives a general breakdown of the system and  identifies how it can be beneficial to IPPC facilities. The presenation will be available to view in the coming weeks.

'Comparison of Two Very Different Glacial Tills in the Northeast of Ireland'

 Padraic Mulroy of Mulroy Environmental gave a presentation to a graduate level  Environmental Pedology Class held by the Soil & Water Science Department of the University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, U.S. The presentation was titled 'Comparison of Two Very Different Glacial Tills in the Northeast of Ireland'.

 'Sustainable Wastewater Management in Rural Housing Developments'