I move:
That Dáil Éireann approves:
The Agreement on the Implementation of a European Project on Pollution, on the topic "Analysis of Organic Micro-Pollutants in Water"
a copy of which Agreement was laid on the table of Dáil Éireann on 2nd day of February, 1972.
This project forms part of the European Co-operative Programme in Science and Technology in which 19 countries are taking part. This programme was initiated by the European Economic Community. In addition to the EEC member-countries, including the three new member states, ten other European countries are participating in the programme.
The motivation behind the programme is the realisation in western European countries that the scale of research and development required to deal with many current problems is increasingly beyond the resources of single European countries. It is felt that these problems could best be dealt with by the pooling of the efforts of European countries in joint research and development programmes.
The exploratory work for the programme commenced in 1967 in a number of sectors. A number of the projects which have been considered have reached the operational stage. At a ministerial meeting on Science and Technology in Brussels, agreements have been signed by various countries in relation to the particular projects in which they propose to participate. Ireland has signed the agreement relating to the project dealing with the analysis of micro-pollutants in water, as well as indicating its willingness to participate in four other major projects.
The aim of the micro-pollutants project is the development of methods for analysing as completely as possible organic micro-pollutants in water. It is hoped that the project will result in the development of instrumentation enabling rapid and automatic analyses to be undertaken.
The results of the project should extend considerably our knowledge of the organic micro-pollutants present in water. This is a subject of growing concern because of the increasing diversity and complexity of effluent residues present in water, which may give rise to hazards to public health through various pathways such as drinking water, irrigation, food chains, et cetera. The immediate interest is in fresh water but the methods developed will be largely applicable also to sea water. The project will also facilitate the tracing of the origin of micro-pollutants and the assessment of the efficacy of treatment methods in removing them.
A copy of the agreement on the Implementation of a European Project on Pollution on the topic "Analysis of Organic Micro-Pollutants in Water" has been laid before the House I recommend this agreement to the House for approval.