Tyrone woman speaks at Lough Neagh protest in Belfast

PROTESTERS from Tyrone were among the hundreds who attended a rally in Belfast at the weekend designed to raise awareness of the algal bloom crisis at Lough Neagh. 

Those attending the protest in Writers’ Square on Saturday said they were sending a message that they were fed up with pollution in the lough.

Lough Neagh, the largest freshwater lake in the UK and Ireland, has been blighted by toxic blue-green algae since June.

One of those speaking at the rally was Cookstown woman Louise Taylor, who is the founder of the community collective ‘Love Our Lough’.

Louise is a researcher and environmentalist who has campaigned for years for Lough Neagh to be returned to public ownership and a solution to the issue at the lough to be resolved.

Louise told WeAreTyrone, “The rally in Belfast on Saturday was a great success with a great turnout. It was very encouraging to see so many people out in support of the lough and seeing that so many people from across the North care about this issue.

“This issue is not going away any time soon and not enough is being done to resolve it.”

The lough supplies half of Belfast’s drinking water and 40 per-cent of NI‘s overall supply.