Protestors highlight water quality concerns at Cork city centre rally

A protest took place at the Grand Parade in Cork on Saturday afternoon aimed at highlighting ongoing issues with water supplies across the city. 

Organised by Right2Water Cork and the Unite trade union, the protest also highlighted how water service workers are seeking commitments that water operations will remain within public ownership.

Among the speakers to address the roughly 150 strong crowd were Solidarity Party - People Before Profit Cork city councillor, Brian McCarthy, and Cork North Central Sinn Féin TD, Thomas Gould.

Mr Gould said water in Cork is "dirty and unsafe", and contained high levels of manganese.

Speaking to The Echo, Sinn Féin Cork city councillor Michelle Gould, who was also at the protest, pledged to continue highlighting the ongoing issues with water in Cork.

“People are just so fed up. We will just keep going and keep fighting. But I’d say people are just so disheartened at this stage because they have dirty water for so long coming out of their taps.

"Irish Water talk about how many kilometres of pipes that need to be replaced, and there still is over 200kms to be done. It will be the next generation that will see clean water at this stage at the rate they are going," said Ms Gould. 

Enough is enough

“Enough is enough. Look at the cost of living and how much is it costing people to buy water every week, replace machines and replace kettles. Not everyone can afford it. That is the problem and it is the most vulnerable that are suffering the most."

A spokesperson for Uisce Éireann told The Echo the company had invested more than €100 million in infrastructure improvements across Cork city in recent years, including the €40 million upgrade of the Lee Road Plant in 2022. They said this resulted in the removal of the plant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Remedial Action List.

“Uisce Éireann recognises the impact water discolouration has on affected Cork city residents and reiterates its commitment to prioritising our response to this issue through its dedicated Water Quality Taskforce for Cork city.

“We have ongoing engagement with all key stakeholders and are working to deliver a number of measures for the benefit of all residents and businesses in Cork city," said the spokesperson.

“We are committed to enabling communities to thrive by continuously upgrading and developing critical infrastructure to support sustainable growth and development, providing safe drinking water and enhancing the environment.”