NDP funded Rural Water Programme to improve quality of drinking water - 23 February 2009

On the 23^rd of February, Mr Michael Kitt TD, Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, announced the 2009 Rural Water Programme, which is funded under the Water Services Sub-Programme of the National Development Plan.

Speaking at the Water Services Training Centre in Castlebar, Co Mayo, the Minister announced allocations totalling €100m for a range of new and improved rural water infrastructure, mainly to improve drinking water quality in community owned group water schemes.   There are as many as 5,500 group schemes throughout the country providing drinking water for over 170,000 households, as well as for farms and other local businesses.

The €100m allocation for 2009 will provide:

• €65.7m for measures to improve water quality in group schemes with private sources, such as rivers, lakes and boreholes;
• €5.4m for new group water schemes and for extensions of existing schemes to cater for growing rural communities;
• €28.9m for improvements to smaller public water and sewerage schemes.

 From the €65.7m earmarked for group schemes with private sources:

• €40.2m will be spent on new water treatment facilities;
• €14.0m will be invested in upgrading group schemes being taken over by local authorities and absorbed into the public water supply system;
• €10.0m is for essential network upgrading and for minor works to group schemes awaiting substantial upgrading;
• €1.5m is for decommissioning quality deficient sources and connecting the groups to local authority mains.

The €28.9m for small public water and sewerage schemes will allow local authorities to carry out works that will ensure compliance with drinking water quality standards and avoid pollution threats.  It will also allow authorities to connect more houses to public water and sewerage networks.  The €28.9m allocation also includes €10m for remedial works approved by the Department for particular public water supplies identified by the EPA as having potential quality issues. 

The Minister said that the 2009 allocations were a well balanced package that would effectively drive forward the Action Plan to guarantee top quality drinking water supplies for all rural consumers and communities.  "We are approaching realisation of that goal so let us finish the job as quickly as we can", he added.  Earlier in the day he opened new water treatment plants for the Ballycroy and Fahy Group Water Schemes in Co Mayo.

The Minister also expressed his disappointment that, despite the progress that had been made in upgrading the vast majority of sub-standard group water supplies around the country "a handful of groups are failing to engage and are continuing to provide their members with poor quality water".  The Minister said that the group schemes concerned "must face up to their responsibilities or the local authorities will use the statutory powers now available to them".  He added that it would be regrettable if "draconian measures had to be taken to convince groups to avail of grants packages".  Grants of up to 100% of cost are available to group water schemes installing new water treatment facilities.

Rural Water Programme 2009

Allocations to County Councils

*Including the €10m funding for approved remedial works on certain small public water supplies.

Further information is available from the Department of Environment Heritage and Local Government at:

Tel: (01) 888 2638 

E-Mail: press-office@environ.ie

Web site: www.environ.ie