Ongoing series of boil water notices causing ‘significant’ disruption to Cork town

A Cork senator has said the people of Macroom deserve a concrete plan with clear timelines and a guarantee that boil water notices for the town will not continue into 2026 and beyond.

Sinn Féin Cork North West senator Nicole Ryan last week  raised the issue of the boil water notices which have been placed on households and businesses in Macroom in the Seanad.

The most recent Macroom boil water notice, the latest in a series going back more than two years, was introduced on September 12 to protect the health of approximately 4,697 customers and was issued due to operational issues at Macroom Water Treatment Plant.

Huge frustration

Ms Ryan said the long-standing issue of boil water notices has caused huge frustration for the people of Macroom.

“Every couple of weeks the story repeats itself. The boil water notice goes in and families and businesses are massively disrupted.

“People are left with added expenses, worry, and uncertainty about something as basic as clean, safe water.

“The cost of water is not cheap, yet people are paying for it daily and weekly because they fear the tap water they have.

“The people in Macroom are asking a very reasonable question. Why should they accept this as the continuous normal and why should they just take it lying down?”

In April 2025 a €6.5m upgrade of the Macroom Water Treatment Plant commenced.

The Uisce Éireann project aims to address the risks to water quality and the frequent boil water notices the people of Macroom have experienced over the last number of years.

The works are expected to be completed in the summer of 2026.

Inconvenience

Minister of state at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage John Cummins said in the Seanad response to Ms Ryan regarding the boil water notices: “I recognise the inconvenience placed on those who have a boil water notice on their water supply. As the senator rightly pointed out, the inconvenience for householders and businesses is very significant.

“I am pleased to say there is a significant investment which will have a positive impact in terms of the ability to expand development in Macroom over the coming years, which is what we want to see in terms of increased housing capacity.

“Obviously, adequate water and wastewater supply is critical to ensuring that expansion can continue in Macroom.”