DIESEL HAS BEEN leaking into the River Liffey from an underground pipe connection near the Samuel Beckett Bridge for over a year, The Journal has learnt.
This pipe connection links to a fuel farm owned by Irish Rail, which is used as diesel storage for fuelling trains at Connolly Station.
It’s unclear how much diesel has been spilt into the water, but Irish Rail and Dublin City Council both confirmed to The Journal that the leak was discovered in March 2025.
A spokesperson for Irish Rail added that diesel is believed to have been leaking into the Liffey for “a number of weeks” before it was discovered by the authorities.
Dublin Port undertook the initial investigation, having “immediately activated its oil spill response procedures, including the deployment of oil booms and absorbent materials,” when the leak was discovered, a spokesperson said.
They added that further assessments by Dublin City Council identified the source of the leak “within a series of culverts”.
Since then, a clean-up operation has been underway to contain the spread of diesel, with Irish Rail contracting a company to help.
But 14 months on from its initial discovery, the leak does not appear to have been fixed.
A spokesperson for Dublin City Council told The Journal the council “is aware of, and is overseeing, the ongoing response to a pollution incident affecting a localised area of the River Liffey immediately downstream of the Samuel Beckett Bridge.”
They added that a specialised contractor was hired by Irish Rail to “undertake environmental protection and remediation works”, including the mitigation measures currently in place to “contain and address the incident”.
A floating barrier has been placed in the water close to the Samuel Beckett Bridge to contain the diesel spill.
Diesel is acutely toxic to aquatic life and can make fish seriously ill.
The Liffey is home to a variety of fish, including perch and roach, which are often found in the city centre.
“Since containment and recovery measures have been implemented, this has prevented diesel from entering the watercourse beyond the immediate area,” a spokesperson for Irish Rail told The Journal.
A spokesperson for Dublin City Council added that the council will “continue to monitor the situation” and engage with the relevant authorities as “the incident response remains ongoing”.
A Dublin Port spokesperson also said it remains “in close contact with all relevant parties to support continued containment efforts and the protection of the River Liffey.”
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Conor O’Carroll is an investigative reporter with The Journal Investigates.
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