'Significant progress' on city’s water but 'colour issues' must be resolved by Uisce Éireann, EPA report states

THE Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has welcomed the construction of a new water treatment plant at Lee Rd in Cork City, describing it as having made “significant progress” in providing high-quality drinking water for more than 97,000 consumers.

As a result, the Cork City (Lee Road) water supply was removed from the EPA’s Remedial Action List (RAL) in 2022. The EPA’s RAL is a priority list of ‘at-risk’ supplies that require significant corrective action.

However, it was also noted that discolouration issues in the water supply have been highlighted.

“While water from the plant is compliant, colour issues have occurred, and must be resolved by Uisce Éireann,” the EPA’s most recent Drinking Water Quality in Public Supplies Report states.

The EPA described the upgraded Lee Road Water Treatment Plant (WTP), the final cost of which was approximately €40m, as a welcome improvement in the safety and security of a major water supply to citizens of the country’s second-largest city.

Nationally, the EPA’s report found that the quality of drinking water in public supplies and public group water schemes remained very high in 2022 but that the overall number of people served by public water supplies on the EPA’s remedial action list increased in 2022.

Uisce Éireann is required to put an action plan in place to rectify the issues at all supplies on the remedial action list.

The EPA said that Uisce Éireann must address the increased number of supplies on the remedial action list and submit action programmes with completion dates.

The EPA also found that better vigilance and improved incident management by Uisce Éireann in 2021 carried over into 2022, resulting in increased detection of problems. The EPA said these problems have been managed by the temporary imposition of an increased number of protective boil water and water restriction notices which, it said, is a positive development, and that this vigilance will result in a safer water supply for all consumers.

The EPA said that, in the medium to long term, it expects to see a decline in the number of boil water and water restriction notices due to improved investment and management.

The report also showed that compliance with the microbiological and chemical standards for drinking water remains high at greater than 99.7%, which means the water in our public water supplies is safe to drink.

Uisce Éireann’s head of asset operations Tom Cuddy said Uisce Éireann recognises the challenges that remain in addressing issues associated with an ageing water infrastructure and that it will take a number of years and sustained high levels of investment to address all these legacy issues. However, he said that Uisce Éireann is confident that its capital investment programme will transform Ireland’s water services.

“Public health is our top priority, and we will continue to invest in our infrastructure and implement operational improvement measures to deliver world-class drinking water supplies for all our customers,” said Mr Cuddy.

“Through initiatives such as our national disinfection programme, the rollout of the Drinking Water Safety Plan approach, and our enhanced testing and monitoring of treatment plants, we have made enormous strides in ensuring more secure and resilient supplies.”

The Lee Road Water Treatment Plant provides around 70% of Cork City’s total treated water.

Water is taken from the River Lee, treated in the plant, and then pumped to a series of reservoirs in the city.

The original plant was constructed in the late 19th century. Last year, Uisce Éireann completed construction of a new water treatment plant on the existing site at Lee Road.