Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 26 Apr 1990

Vol. 397 No. 10

Written Answers. - Quality of Drinking Water.

Eamon Gilmore

Question:

33 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for the Environment if all local authorities are complying with regulations and monitoring the quality of drinking water; if he will publish the findings which have been submitted to his Department; if he will instruct local authorities to make the results of their monitoring available in the same way as their quality data is published; if he will provide sufficient staff to local authorities to carry out the sampling and analysis required by regulations; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Brian O'Shea

Question:

61 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for the Environment if he will give the nitrate level, if any, in drinking water from all public supplies throughout the country, including group schemes; if any are outside the EC safety regulations; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for the Environment (Mr. Flynn)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 33 and 61 together.

Sanitary authorities are monitoring the quality of drinking water as required by the European Communities (Quality of Water Intended for Human Consumption) Regulations, 1988. Monitoring results for 1989 are currently being returned by the authorities to my Department. So far, the results provided for nitrates in public supplies and group schemes are all within the statutory limit of 50 mg/l. I will be publishing the findings in due course when all the returns are available. In the meantime, it is open to sanitary authorities themselves to make available data collected by them. There is a high degree of commitment on the part of the authorities to the implementation of the regulations and I am satisfied that effective arrangements for sampling and analysis are generally in place.

The provision of staff for particular purposes is a matter for local authorities themselves, subject to the various controls laid down. In addition, the county/ city manager has complete discretion as to the allocation of staffing to the various programme areas within his responsibility.