Campaigners plan a march this Sunday, May 17, to address the return of blue-green algae in Lough Neagh. The event starts at 12.30pm from the Battery Bar in Tyrone and ends at Ardboe High Cross.

The March for Lough Neagh comes 40 years after a 1986 protest against lignite mining along the same route. Organisers from the Save Lough Neagh campaign seek urgent environmental action and changes in government priorities.

Speakers include swimmers, fishermen, activists and Bernadette McAliskey. Pádraig Mac Niocaill, a spokesperson, stated that communities must mobilise again as Stormont has not protected the environment or clean drinking water, pointing to sand dredging and underfunding of water services.

Declan Coney, a fisherman at the 1986 rally, called for action over words from the government. Early toxic algae appeared in February, with severe eutrophication, biodiversity loss, algal blooms and dead wildlife now common.