Several thousand people gathered at Battery Harbour on Sunday for a march along the shores of Lough Neagh to protest the lake's ongoing pollution.

The demonstration moved to the Ardboe High Cross, where speakers addressed the crowd about the need for immediate measures to address the ecological decline.

Civil rights campaigner Bernadette Devlin McAliskey spoke at the event, which organisers said was intended to highlight years of government delay in tackling the crisis.

Spokesperson Pádraig Mac Niocaill said sand dredging continues at the site and millions of tonnes of sewage enter the water annually, with early algal blooms now appearing in February.

Fisherman Declan Coney, who joined the protest, said communities had come together previously to prevent damage to the lough and should do so again.

Hugh Scullion of the Mid Ulster Workers' Party stated that the lake supplies 40 per cent of Northern Ireland's drinking water and called for the bed and soil to be returned to public ownership.

Organisers said they will continue to press for an end to dredging, stricter controls on waste entering the lake, and long-term restoration plans.