asked the Minister for Health if he will consider initiating a national publicity campaign to indicate to users of drinking water, not provided by local authorities, the means of ensuring that these supplies may be kept pure and of preventing or combating contamination and, further, if he will consider the provision of a service by his Department to analyse samples of water submitted to it for testing purposes.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Purity of Water Supplies.
I am advised that the only sure method of ensuring the purity of drinking water obtained from springs, etc., is the well-known practice of boiling the water before use. Other methods available, e.g., domestic filtering and chemical disinfecting, are liable to error owing to the human element.
Advice to boil water for drinking is regularly issued by chief medical officers. On the occurrence of certain diseases, e.g., infantile paralysis and typhoid, the county medical officers concerned are reminded of standing instructions previously circulated to all local authorities that they should issue notices advising the boiling of all water for drinking and domestic purposes supplied from sources other than adequately protected pumps or pipe-systems.
In these circumstances, I do not consider that the undertaking of a nationwide publicity campaign and the incurring of the heavy expense that would be entailed would be justified, especially as it is self-evident, as regards combating contamination, that supplies of the nature referred to in the question, should be protected against pollution by human or animal sewage effluent.
As regards the latter portion of the Deputy's question, Section 27 of the Local Government (Sanitary Services) Act, 1948, enables sanitary authorities to take samples of water from any water supply (whether public or private) serving any inhabitants of their sanitary district for the purpose of the analysis of such samples. If, as the result of analysis, it is found that the water is unfit for human consumption, the local authority is obliged to take all reasonable steps to warn users of the water supply accordingly.