Westport water augmentation scheme commenced its initial planning ten years ago to meet the projected needs of the Westport area, Louisburgh town and the rural area between these locations which are 12 miles apart. Substantial progress on the technical phases of this large capital scheme was made from 1990 to the summer of this year, when a recommended tender was submitted to the Department of the Environment.
While the substantial growth of Westport's population and tourist appeal paints an image of prosperity, underlying this is a serious threat to the future growth of the town, despite the mounting pressures for further physical development with record numbers of planning applications being considered on a monthly basis by the local authority. Westport has been the only town in Mayo to show consistent growth in its population for the past three censuses. In 1991 a growth rate of 7 per cent was reported and this will be further increased in the next census.
Even without the designation of the town as a seaside renewal area, in 1993 and 1994 substantial numbers of new houses were built and, increasingly, a significant number of people who work in Castlebar choose to live in Westport. As a town it has a long tourist history but with careful attention to environmental concerns in the planning process, a substantial investment in amenity works and millions of pounds of local investment in hotels, guesthouses, bed and breakfasts and restaurants, the town has gained a national and international reputation as a quality destination to visit.
This summer was the most successful tourist season to date but it brought to the forefront the serious crisis that faces the town in its ability to cater for existing needs and to cope with future requirements. However, the prolonged dry spell this summer further accentuated the crisis management operated by the local authority over recent years. The present system can only treat 700,000 gallons per day but peak demand has exceeded 800,000 gallons on occasion. In these emergencies untreated but disinfected water is put into the system.
The growth in demand for water has shown a continued upward spiral and this will be further exacerbated in 1996 with a minimum of 75 new hotel bedrooms being built in addition to the extra accommodation provided in 1995, new guesthouses and bed and breakfasts and continued industrial expansion.
In a water system requiring renewal, leaks of a minor nature can have serious consequences. Our largest industrial employer makes sterile ophthalmic solutions which are water based. It employs 700 employees and the local authority is constantly operating on a knife edge to cope with increasing demands.
The tender from reputable contractors has been with the Department since August of this year. It has been examined by Department officials and I am led to believe that matters are in order. The new scheme, costed at approximately £16 million, is intended not only to augment the supply to Westport town but with a capacity to treat 1.5 million gallons per day it will be sufficient to meet the future needs of Westport town, the large rural area to and beyond Louisburgh to group water schemes which have a poor supply. The scheme also envisages an extension north of Westport to Kilmeena where the present source of supply is best described as dire.
My constituency has shown an overall loss of population but with growth centres such as Westport, designated by the Minister for Tourism and Trade as an area of urban renewal, and that challenge having been successfully clasped by the people of the area over recent years, it now requires an early decision from the Minister to commit the funds necessary to allow a contractor to come on site. I have the support of my constituency colleagues in raising this matter. Unless a Government decision is made immediately industrial, commercial, farming and residential interests will look to the summer of 1996 with trepidation.
A £1.5 million leisure complex which opened in Westport in August of this year was grant-aided to the extent of £250,000 by the Department of Tourism and Trade. The leisure complex incorporated a 20 metre swimming pool which was not allowed by the local authority to be filled with water from the town's supply. Water had to be transported by tanker from Castlebar for the purpose. I hope this indicates clearly the seriousness of the case.
