EPA - Ireland's Environment, An Integrated Assessment - 2020

Chapter 16: Conclusions SYSTEM CHANGE – DELIVERY ON SECTORAL AND SOCIETAL OUTCOMES NEEDS TO BE ACCELERATED SOE 11: Water Services Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure must meet the Needs of our Society Action is needed nationally to address the underlying causes for the delays in delivering improvements in drinking water and urban wastewater infrastructure. Addressing the legacy of underinvestment and fixing the shortcomings highlighted in successive EPA reports on drinking water and urban wastewater need to be prioritised. The resilience of water-related infrastructure must also improve to guard against the impacts of weather events and climate extremes on water services and the water environment. Drinking water is a priority area for action to protect public health (Chapter 14). While the quality of public supplies remains high, it is not always secure from failures at treatment plants or, in some cases, treatment processes need upgrading to reduce risks to the supply. A total of 67 boil water notices were in place in 2019, affecting almost 700,000 people. 10 Of those boil water notices, 59 were in place for more than 30 days, meaning they are classed as long-term notices requiring investment in infrastructure to address. Two boil water notices for over 600,000 consumers in 2019 highlights the vulnerability of our drinking water supplies. In 2020, 52 public supplies managed by Irish Water were on the EPA’s Remedial Action List (RAL). 11 The RAL details those supplies in need of upgrades or improvements. For example, the RAL includes drinking water treatment plants that do not have appropriate treatment for the parasite Cryptosporidium. These supplies need to be prioritised for investment. However, delays and increasing uncertainty in Irish Water’s planning and delivery of critical improvements to water treatment plants are making supplies vulnerable to failure, posing a risk to the health of a large proportion of the population (EPA, 2020g). In addition to those served by public supplies, over one million people get their water from private supplies. Animal or human waste (as demonstrated by positive results for the bacterial indicator E. coli ) was found in 62 small private supplies serving commercial or public buildings in 2018. 12 Improvements are needed in the management and disinfection of these supplies to eliminate risks to public health. 10 http://www.epa.ie/newsandevents/news/pressreleases2020/ name,69121,en.html 11 RAL accessed 8 September 2020; see http://www.epa.ie/water/dw/ral/ 12 http://www.epa.ie/newsandevents/news/pressreleases2020/ name,67472,en.html The increasing prevalence of the verocytotoxin-producing E. coli (VTEC) bacterial pathogen in household private wells in rural areas is a significant cause for concern. Those households in areas with septic tanks and their water supplies (such as wells or boreholes) should have these systems checked and maintained to safeguard against waterborne pathogens. Improvements are needed in urban waste water treatment to protect water quality and in some areas to deal with untreated sewage discharges and overflows that could affect public health and bathing water (EPA, 2020h). Repeated delays in some essential projects mean that raw sewage discharges will continue past 2021 in 33 locations around the country (Chapter 14). The delays by Irish Water in treating these discharges is not acceptable as funding for these waste water projects is one of the top priorities mandated into Irish Water’s Capital Investment Plan. Action is needed to prevent further delays in progressing these projects through the various project stages prior to construction. Irish Water needs to do more to deliver on its commitments and legal duty under EPA waste water authorisations to fix waste water issues, while ensuring that public information about plans to fix untreated sewage discharges is made available locally. 445