Sir, – The articles on bringing Shannon water to Dublin mentioned the disruption and cost of the project. Most of Dublin’s water comes from Wicklow from the 1860’s Roundwood Reservoir and the 1940’s Blessington Reservoir.
In their day these were much bigger and more disruptive projects than the Shannon project. The Blessington Reservoir was the largest man-made one in Europe and many families were severely displaced to build it.
Since the Dublin Waterworks Act of 1861, Wicklow has received a yearly payment to fund costs, reconfirmed in 2007 by the Minister for Environment. However this ceased in 2015. The Shannon consultation document suggests a payment to that area based on water used and the same should be reinstated to Wicklow.
– Yours, etc,
Cllr DEREK MITCHELL
Greystones,
Co Wicklow.