The inter-agency group set up last month to investigate the cause of the large fish kill on the River Blackwater near Mallow in Co Cork in early August has concluded its work, but says it has not been able to identify the cause of the fish kill.

It is estimated up to 32,000 salmon and brown trout died in a 37-kilometre stretch of the river when an unknown environmental irritant entered the water.

This would make it the largest single fish kill on record here.

However, in its final report published this evening on the Inland Fisheries Ireland website, the interagency group said it could find no evidence to support a link between the fish mortalities and a point source of pollution, or a specific environmental insult or waterborne irritant.

The report said that no change in water quality in the affected stretch of river has been detected between 2024 and 2025.

Diagnostic analyses by the Marine Institute on dead brown trout sampled from the river on 14 August had earlier found no evidence of systemic disease.

More recent analysis of brown trout for presence of chemicals, pesticides and heavy metals also did not identify any such possible irritant.

The report says the waterborne agent that caused the fish kill had a likely entered the river Blackwater around the 5 or 6 August and the first fish mortalities were observed 72 hours later, on 9 August 2025.

However, it says the pollutant dissipated quickly, rendering it undetectable in water samples and fish tissue samples.

There was no evidence of any mortalities of protected species such as otter or freshwater pearl mussels.
Neither were there any mortalities among bird species, nor indications that livestock health and the food chain from primary production was affected by the fish kill incident.

The report also details the outcome of 85 different investigations and inspections in relation to water quality issues along the affected stretch of river but could find no causal link to the fish mortalities.

It found no evidence of a chronic water quality problem, either before or after the fish mortalities.

This suggests, according to the report, that the cause of the mortalities was a short-term pollution event.

The EPA investigated regulated sites in the River Blackwater catchment, including industrial facilities, wastewater treatment plants and drinking water plants but it could establish no causal link between these activities and the fish mortalities in the River Blackwater.

20 complaints were received from members of the public in respect of the incident and were followed up by the EPA but again, no causal link with the fish kill could be established.

Cork County Council also inspected twenty light industrial and commercial sites within the catchment, comprising all businesses licensed under Section 4 of the Local Government Water Pollution Act as well as other commercial operators.

14 investigations of agricultural activities within the catchment were also carried out. But in all cases, a causal link to the incident could not be established.

In addition, Inland Fisheries Ireland itself carried out 198 habitat inspections, and 52 repeat habitat inspections, at 47 locations along the affected stretch of river.

It conducted macroinvertebrate sampling at 10 different sites. It also sent fish samples to Germany, via Eurofins Environmental Ltd, to be tested for a broad suite of 900 chemicals, pesticides and heavy metals.

Yet despite all these investigations, nothing was found.

Minister of State with responsibility for Fisheries and the Marine, Timmy Dooley, has welcomed the publication of the summary report from the inter-agency group, which he says provides a clear account of the response to, and the investigation into, the incident.

He said: “The extensive fish mortalities that occurred on the River Blackwater represent a serious impact to local fish stocks and have had a deeply negative impact on surrounding communities.

“Although the evidence points to this being a short-term pollution event, Inland Fisheries Ireland estimate that up to 32,000 salmon and brown trout mortalities may have occurred.

“The investigation has now concluded. In this instance, a definitive cause could not be identified despite the extensive and significant investigation by members of the inter-agency group.

“The report does assert that that a waterborne irritant likely entered the river up to 72 hours before the first mortalities were observed, at a point most likely upstream of the mortalities initially observed by IFI. It dissipated quickly, resulting in it being undetectable in subsequent water samples and fish tissue samples.

“The findings in the report do give reassurance that this was a short-lived event, with no evidence of ongoing pollution risks. I want to emphasise that the investigation was exhaustive and involved extensive sampling, testing and monitoring – by multiple State agencies.”

Fourteen years ago, US president Barack Obama stepped on stage at Dublin’s College Green to a rapturous reception. The 60,000 crowd had been worked up to hysterical levels of excitement by warm-up acts including Westlife and Jedward, and sports figures Brian O’Driscoll and Katie Taylor, as well as Taoiseach Enda Kenny.

On Thursday, Mr Obama was back in town to receive the Freedom of the city of Dublin. He was greeted by Lord Mayor Ray McAdam, seven other city councillors, Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe and former Taoiseach Brian Cowen. Also in attendance was former Lord Mayor Brendan Carr, who proposed Mr Obama for the honour eight years ago, as well as city council chief executive Richard Shakespeare and a small number of other officials and dignitaries.

The ceremony, attended by a crowd of about 30, was held in the Constitution room of the Shelbourne Hotel opposite St Stephen’s Green, the park where Mr Obama now has the right to graze sheep. Neither the media nor the general public were permitted to attend.

The former US president was presented with a copy of the first American edition of Ulysses and a bottle of whiskey. He signed the official scroll, making him a freeman of Dublin. According to one or two of those present, he said a few words referencing the “challenging times” the world was facing, and the need for “hope” that there would be “brighter days ahead”.

He stood for some photos, shook hands, told Green Party councillor Janet Horner she looked very young to be a politician (she was delighted) and the whole event was done and dusted in about half an hour.

Afterwards, Cllr Horner said Mr Obama was “very warm”, while Social Democrats councillor Cat O’Driscoll said the ceremony was “quite nice” and “an uplifting occasion”.

Cllr McAdam said it was a privilege to have the opportunity to award Mr Obama the Freedom of Dublin, saying the former president had shown that words coupled with convictions “could still move mountains”. Cllr McAdam reflected on the words of Beckett: “Better hope deferred than none”.

Groups leaders of each party on the council were invited to the ceremony, but Sinn Féin, People Before Profit and the Independent group declined to attend.

The Independent group said it was boycotting the event due to Mr Obama’s foreign policy regime in office, including his support of Israel “despite its war crimes in Gaza and relentless settlement expansion”.

About 50 people gathered outside the Shelbourne Hotel during the ceremony, some expressing similar sentiments.

Mark Price of the Irish Anti War Movement said he was there to “protest Barack Obama’s visit to Dublin”.

“He’s been an absolute operative for the American empire and we should not be [giving] him the Freedom of the city of Dublin, in my opinion,” he said.

“He might have made some statements early in his presidency about Guantanamo Bay and Palestine and so on, but in practice, he vastly increased instability through drone warfare in Afghanistan and Pakistan and through escalating the Ukraine situation in 2014.”

However, most shared positive sentiments. Danielle Bochneak, from Obama’s hometown of Chicago, who has been living in Ireland for two years, recalled meeting him on the night he secured his first presidential term in 2008. “It was just a handshake, but he makes a connection with everyone that he comes in contact with . . . so that was really incredible.”

Asked why she came to the Shelbourne on Thursday afternoon, she said: “I miss him. We are lacking the civility that president Obama and Michelle Obama bring to the White House, so I really wanted to see them again.”

Terri McClain, from Seattle, wearing an “I heart Obama” t-shirt, said she flew to Dublin to attend Obama’s public interview with Fintan O’Toole, which will take place in the 3Arena on Friday evening.

“We all miss him in the States and what’s happening now is not a good thing,” she said. “God bless president Obama, he’s a good person and I support him all the time.”

Sylvia Jones from Dublin and Dave Quinn from Limerick joined the crowd at the Shelbourne “to support Obama”.

Wearing a shirt that read “Trump Not Welcome”, Ms Jones said she is “wishing for better times, the good times when [Obama] was in power, not this absolute disaster that’s happening at the moment”.

Spanish police are investigating the death of an Irish woman in Benidorm.

The woman – who died last week – has been named locally as Catherine ‘Cat’ Peckham, who was aged 65.

Police say they are treating the death as homicide.

Local media in Spain are reporting that Ms Peckham was originally from Cork, but had connections to the UK and had been living in Spain for some years.

It is understood Ms Peckham died after an incident in the Rincon de Loix area of Benidorm on 17 September.

Her body was taken to the Benidorm Medical Judicial Institute for an autopsy to be carried out.

Spanish police confirmed a 63-year-old British woman has been arrested in connection with the investigation.

A Spanish National Police spokesperson said: “We have launched a homicide investigation into the death of an Irish national and all possibilities are open at present.

A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs said it was aware of the case and was providing consular assistance.