Water schemes at limit of safety rules

THE PROVISION of drinking water in Ireland is operating at the limit of European rules – largely because of the State’s high number of private water systems and homes on individual wells.

That is the opinion of a range of experts who yesterday addressed a seminar on Ireland’s drinking water organised by Engineers Ireland and the National Standards Authority.

The seminar, Troubled Water: Ireland’s Drinking Water Supply, was told by Dr Kevin Kelleher of the Health Service Executive (HSE) the number of large public water supply systems in Ireland was 952. These provide drinking water for 88 per cent of the population. But he said there were a further 1,500 small schemes which supplied drinking water to just 8 per cent of the population.

Dr Kelleher said the small schemes were more difficult to monitor and, in some cases, those who bought homes on small group schemes or private wells were not aware of the origin of their water. Contamination was well-known.

He said many of the schemes were operating at the limits of the EU water framework directive.

Dr Kelleher said the situation was further complicated by the use of a high proportion of surface water by Irish water authorities.

“A number of public supplies are poor,” he said. In a reference to the cryptosporidium problems around Lough Corrib in recent years, he remarked that “at least Galway has done us a favour. It really gave us cause for thought of the public health issues of drinking water.”

Maurice Buckley, of the National Standards Authority of Ireland, said “public awareness” of the cryptosporidium issue was a good thing and people had been shocked at how fragile but important good water quality was.

He described Ireland’s drinking water network as an “antiquated” system which lost about 40 per cent of its water, “compared to our EU peers where a 10 per cent loss is deemed acceptable, and a 15 per cent loss very poor”.

Dr Ruth Barrington, of the Office of Environmental Enforcement, said enforcement of drinking water standards had improved with additional powers since 2007, and in large schemes standards were similar to many European countries. But she said the office, a division within the Environmental Protection Agency, was also concerned about the number of small water schemes. Schemes serving populations of less than 5,000 were generally “poor”.

Dr Una Fallon, a consultant in public health medicine and a member of the HSE National Water Group, said she was concerned for public health staffing levels. She told the seminar “today’s challenges” included the fact about 20 per cent of public health consultants – some 40 in number – would retire this year.

Dr Fallon said the public service recruitment embargo would make replacements difficult, and she predicted in 10 years’ time there may be just 10 consultants left in the service.