Boil water notice on North East supply expected to be lifted by end of September

*Outrageous situation with hundreds of publicans and hoteliers still paying full price for drinking water*

The boil water notice on the North East Roscommon regional water supply scheme is expected to be lifted by the end of September and Fianna Fail TD for Roscommon/Galway Eugene Murphy has urged Irish Water to  strictly adhere to this timeframe as she says thousands of householders have been consistently inconvenienced.

The scheme extends from Roosky in the east to Tulsk in the west and from Drumsna in the north to Ballyleague in the south. Deputy Murphy noted that domestic customers receive a 100% discount to the water supply portion of their bill for the duration of the boil water notice but they are still liable for the charge of wastewater services. However the Fianna Fail TD pointed out the “outrageous” and ridiculous” situation whereby hundreds of publicans, hoteliers, restaurants, cafes etc were still paying full price for both drinking water and wastewater charges despite the fact that there is a boil water notice in place.

“We have seen an absolutely outrageous situation in the North East Roscommon supply area whereby hotels, pubs, restaurants, cafes etc are still being charged full price with no reductions or allowances for drinking water despite the fact that a boil water notice is in place. Commercial outlets get no reduction whatsoever and they are subject to a charge of 1.22 euro per cubic metre if they have their own septic tank but that rises to 2.72 euro per cubic metre if they are on the town supply. Many hotels and restaurants have already paid thousands of euros to install sophisticated water filter systems on their premises in order to ensure the survival of their businesses and on top of that they are still being charged for drinking water that they cannot even use- it is totally unjust situation,” said Deputy Murphy.

Deputy Murphy said that work on the design, supply, installation and commissioning of pressure filters, UV reactor and control panels at Lisheen Lake Pump house was completed in March 2016.  Following this, a 3-month process proving and commissioning period commenced and was completed in July 2016.

“I understand checks are currently being made on the chlorine levels at the end of the watermain network. Irish Water has indicated that the end of September is a likely date for lifting of the boil water notice but I understand that the hold-up was due to the fact that test was not able to register a result due to some technicality and that the HSE will ultimately decide on the date that the boil water notice can be lifted.

“I am calling on Irish Water to strictly adhere to the projected date of the end of September to lift the boil water notice as some 5,400 customers have been seriously inconvenienced long enough at this stage

“A new water treatment plant for the North East Roscommon Regional Water Supply scheme is currently under construction at a new site located near Strokestown. This new plant is due for completion in May 2017- let’s hope that Irish Water will stick to that schedule in a bid to ensure a sustainable and safe supply of drinking water to the communities of North East Roscommon,” concluded Deputy Murphy.