NO-ONE has ever been prosecuted for burning tyres on Eleventh night bonfires, the Environment Agency has confirmed - despite widespread outrage over the illegal practice.
And only three people have been fined in the past seven years for the unlawful dumping of tyres at
bonfire sites.
The three men were fined in total £900 after being brought before the courts for waste disposal offences.
The alarmingly low number of prosecutions emerges after thousands of tyres were last night set alight on bonfires across the north.
Nationalist politicians, community members and the Orange Order had urged loyalists organising bonfires not to burn tyres, which have been branded an environmental and health hazard.
But despite the concerns, many bonfires were decked out with tyres with some such as a beacon in Carrickfergus constructed almost entirely out of tyres.
Meanwhile, official air quality statistics show pollutants in the north's atmosphere increase almost four-fold as a result of Eleventh night bonfires.
Alliance MLA for East Antrim Stewart Dickson, left, described the lack of prosecutions as "disappointing".
"Until those who put tyres on bonfires see others getting punished by the courts, it will be more difficult to stop this practice taking place," he said.
"The burning of tyres on bonfires releases toxins into the air which can pose a serious health risk to those watching the bonfire and in the surrounding area."
Sinn Féin MLA Cathal Boylan, right, said he would contact SDLP environment minister Mark H Durkan to push for a "more robust mechanism" of tracking where and how tyres are disposed.
"The current system is obviously failing when tyres in these numbers end up annually on Eleventh night bonfires," the Newry and Armagh representative said.
Department of Environment figures show hazardous particles in the air, known as PM10, reached almost four times the European average last year after Eleventh night bonfires were lit.
Roger Barrowcliffe, from the Institute of Air Quality Management (IAQM), said the PM10 numbers showed a "spike" in the early hours of July Twelfth.
He said the particles are associated with "serious health effects" and raised concerns over the use of tyres.
"Long-term exposure is known to be associated with premature mortality, usually through cardiovascular effects such as heart attacks," he said.
"Tyres would contain a lot of substances which would be considered highly toxic. It's something that you
wouldn't really want to promote or condone, the open burning of tyres."
The Department of the Environment previously confirmed that burning tyres on bonfires is against the law.
A Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) spokesman last night confirmed: "No-one has been prosecuted for burning tyres on Eleventh night bonfires. This is not straightforward and it is far from a matter simply for NIEA. NIEA cannot take enforcement without good evidence.
"In the majority of cases the necessary evidence can realistically only be obtained by local residents, who would be understandably reluctant to provide statements in court."