I thank the Cathaoirleach for giving me the opportunity to raise this matter. I welcome the Minister of State and I thank him for coming before the House to deal with this matter of paramount importance to the people of the Cavan-Monaghan area.
The poultry and mushroom industries are the two most important for people living in County Monaghan. Poultry and mushroom production account for 47 per cent and 12 per cent, respectively, of the county's gross agricultural output. The figures for national gross agricultural output are 4 per cent and 2 per cent, respectively. There are substantial export markets for both products, with a projected increase of 2.5 per cent and 5 per cent, respectively, in the next decade. The production and processing areas of these industries also create substantial employment.
Both industries were developed in County Monaghan by small individual concerns and they have slowly and steadily built on their success. However, as everyone is aware, success often has its downside. In this instance, the disposal of poultry litter and mushroom waste is causing increasing problems for the county. At present, we face great difficulty because land-spreading of these by-products is being seriously restricted due to the high levels of phosphate and nitrogen discovered in the soil. These high levels are also causing problems in respect of the county's waterways. In 1993, Interreg funded a study which showed that the county's water catchments contain very high levels of contamination and are the most polluted in the country.
It seems the only solution to this problem is to follow the British example where waste is burned to generate electricity. From the most recent information I received from the Department, it appears the Government's energy strategy is designed to increase the share of renewable energy generated by independent producers to 6 per cent by the year 2000.
In 1994, when the first alternative energy competition took place, a project was initiated in County Monaghan to establish a plant to generate electricity from waste material. At that stage, 75 megawatts were available, of which 15 megawatts were to be dedicated to electricity generated from biomass or waste. A company called Monopower was established and a site was acquired for the proposed plant. In addition, a group of people involved in setting up the plant travelled to Scunthorpe in England to view a similar plant, which is situated in the middle of a residential area. At the time in question, successful negotiations took place with the Department of Finance to have the corporation tax reduced to 10 per cent to bring it in line with the rate applying to manufacturing companies. Everything appeared to be in place to bring the plant to County Monaghan but in the spring of 1995, following a change in Government, the competition was redirected towards wind and hydro energy. Needless to say, there was great disappointment in County Monaghan.
A second competition was held in 1996 which resulted in a 30 megawatt licence for north County Dublin being granted to a consortium comprising a US company and the ESB, with the provision that its operation should be up and running by 1999. My most recent inquiries to the Department revealed that the project has not yet passed the planning permission stage.
I raise this issue because a third alternative energy competition is expected to be announced shortly. I understand that 19 megawatts will be dedicated to wind projects, three megawatts to hydro energy and seven megawatts for biomass and waste. There is a need to dedicate at least 15 megawatts from that project to generation of electricity from waste because the projected provision of seven megawatts would not be adequate to cater for the waste material produced in my constituency alone.
This matter affects the entire Border region, particularly County Monaghan with its poultry and mushroom industries. It will also affect County Cavan which has a large number of pig producers. In that context, I wish to highlight the fact that a plant in Denmark burns dried pig slurry to generate electricity. The provision of an electricity generating plant in the area would be a bonus to both counties and the Border region, North and South, because many factories involved in these industries are situated on both sides of the Border.
It is impossible to explain the seriousness of the situation obtaining in County Monaghan at present. The problem has become so grave that restrictions will be placed on further expansion of the poultry and mushroom industries. Recently, fears arose at county council level that planning permission to build new mushroom and poultry houses would be refused on the grounds that there was no suitable site at which people could dispose of waste.
One of the comparisons made is the cost of such a plant. I am aware this is an expensive proposal. It cannot be compared to wind or hydro energy because it costs more to dispose of the waste. For many years Monaghan has been known as an entrepreneurial county and we have depended on individuals who have put their necks on the line by starting industries — of which the mushroom industry is an example — which would not have been popular in the early 1980s. They have done this on their own, although they received grants. They took many risks and have done a great deal for our area.
Most of our farmers are small farmers and many of them have mushroom and poultry units on their farms to earn a living from them. The situation is so serious that we are at risk of losing our small farmers. I cannot stress highly enough the importance of such a project to our area. I am fed up of hearing about the Celtic tiger because we, particularly the small farmers in the Border regions, have not seen the face of the Celtic tiger. If something is not done in the near future, it will sound the death knell for our agri-business, particularly mushroom and poultry production.
I urge the Minister to give serious consideration to Monaghan in future competitions. We are an entrepreneurial county and although the wheels were set in motion for this proposal, it was unfortunately taken from under our noses.
