Air pollution in Letterkenny in Donegal was worse than New Delhi for a time last week.
The Business Post reports particle levels, including sulphur dioxide, were a lot higher than normal - which correlates with the burning of smoky coal.
The fuel's banned in the town, but government isn't pushing through plans to implement it nationwide.
Tony Lowes, from Friends of the Irish Environment, says the threat of legal action from the coal industry put the State off:
