'The crisis in our waterways is not natural' - March for clean water in Lough Neagh on September 26

The march for clean water is taking place at Stormont on September 26.

Campaigners say as ‘the toxic algae continues to ravage Lough Neagh and many of our waterways, politicians responsible for this crisis are attempting to distract and sow sectarian division instead of tackling this public health emergency’.

After thousands marched in Ardboe, Co Tyrone, and big rallies in Antrim and Lurgan over the summer, people across the country are being encouraged to join the March for Clean Water, gathering at the gates of Stormont, 2pm Saturday 26th September.

It has been endorsed by trade unions UNISON, NIPSA and more.

Organisers say that as Stormont returns from the summer, ‘people of the Lough shore, from Upper Bann to Antrim and beyond are being plagued by odours from the toxic algae, horrific sightings of wildlife struggling in the algae, and foul drinking water’.

The rally is inviting people and families of all backgrounds to join swimmers, fishermen, trade unions and more to demand unprecedented action and a drastic change of priorities on the government handling of our environment.

Details on buses across the country to the march are set to be released on @saveloughneagh socials and saveloughneagh.com

A free bus is organised to take people from Derryloughan, The Battery, Toome and Dunsilly around Lough neagh to Stormont.

Organisers add that details about the buses are available on their socials and website.

A spokesperson for Save Lough Neagh said: “Parties who backed the disastrous Going For Growth agri-policy, supercharging this crisis, are currently attempting to stoke sectarian division to distract from the issues that really matter to people: such as clean drinking water and this public health emergency.

“The crisis in our waterways is not natural. This is the result of decades of political decisions prioritising profit over our right to clean water.

"Stormont has failed our water, sacrificing our environment and right to clean water for private interests and export profits. “There’s a lot of debate on if the main cause of this disaster is endemic agricultural runoff, NI water dumping millions of tonnes of sewage every year or extraction such as sand dredging.

"The truth is, it’s all of these things. It’s the treatment of our Lough as a resource to be exploited. Not our home that provides 40% of the north with our drinking water. “Our water service, crippled by decades of Stormont underfunding, is not fit for purpose.

"Stormont must be held responsible for allowing the deterioration of our water service to devolve into a public health emergency. To add insult to injury Stormont is also paving the way for more threats to our waterways, such as factory farms on the lough shore, the recently announced AI & data centres plans and more. We say enough is enough, and every politician must be held to account ahead of May. “Join us at 2pm on Saturday September 26th to send a clear signal that we want drastic change to how our environment is treated.

"No to sectarian division intended to distract. It’s time to put people, wildlife and our environment first.”