Uisce Éireann 'hopeful' discoloured water issue in parts of Cork city could be resolved this year 

AN Uisce Éireann official told an Oireachtas committee the company is “hopeful” it will have completed flushing operations to resolve the issue of discoloured water in a number of areas in Cork city between mid-November and the end of the year and even then the problem might recur because of the age of the cast iron pipes in the city.

Margaret Attridge, the head of water operations at the utility, was responding to queries from Cork North Central Sinn Féin TD Thomas Gould, who had asked during a meeting of the Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government, and Heritage this week when the people on the northside of Cork city would “have a supply of water that was clear and safe to drink”.

In her response, Ms Attridge said that “seven key areas for extensive flushing in Cork city” had been identified. “Hopefully these will be complete by the middle of November this year,” she said. “It is early days, but we are seeing a positive trend in the areas we have gone into.

“If this trend continues, the flushing programme should make a huge difference in the worst impacted areas in Cork city.”

Ms Attridge said the company had its “best scientists” out in the new treatment plant “looking at it and the water chemistry” to see if it was impacting the old network in the city. She said that “minor adjustments” which would require “minor investment” were being made.

“We are currently going through the procurement process and installation of those minor adjustments to condition the water should, hopefully, be completed by the end of the year — this is our timeline to resolve, hopefully, the worst of the water quality issues in Cork city, albeit it is still [a] very old network and when we do have breakages or any problems like this in it, we will have periodic discolouration issues.”

Speaking after the meeting, Mr Gould said he had brought to the committee a bottle of water which had come from a tap in a home in Gurranabraher and while the water looked clear, there was rust and dirt settled at the bottom.

“I am really concerned that people are drinking this kind of water,” he said.

He also reiterated calls for bottled water to be provided by Uisce Éireann through community groups and GAA clubs.

“Dirty brown and orange water is not acceptable — Tanora should come in a bottle, not from people’s taps!”

Uisce Éireann has been asked for further comment.