Water Pollution

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 28 June 2012

Thursday, 28 June 2012

Questions (10)

Clare Daly

Question:

10Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government his views on whether his risk based proposals relating to the standards to be required for septic tank upgrades take due account of the Environmental Protection Agency code of practice for waste water and disposal systems for single houses, 2009, developed following a series of scientific studies or reports, all of which concluded that the measures outlined were necessary to eliminate ground water pollution. [29027/12]

Oral answers (7 contributions)

Deputy Phil Hogan

The EPA 2009 code of practice sets out standards with regard to the design, installation and maintenance of on-site wastewater treatment systems; the code applies to new developments only. My Department issued Circular PSSP 1/10 to all planning authorities and to An Bord Pleanála on 5 January 2010, which sets out the arrangements to apply for the assessment of on-site wastewater disposal systems for new single houses in light of the EPA code of practice regarding such systems.

The performance standards for domestic wastewater treatment systems have been drafted and finalised following detailed consultation with the EPA, an extensive public consultation process and discussion in the joint committee on the environment. The risk-based inspection system for domestic wastewater treatment systems will be implemented in accordance with the national inspection plan which is to be drawn up by the EPA. The plan will be drawn up to highest international standards and in accordance with the recommendation for minimum criteria for environmental inspections which is an EU-approved system for the consistent implementation and enforcement of Community environmental law in all EU member states. This is the appropriate framework for the carrying out of environmental inspections.

The development of the State's response to the European Count of Justice judgment on this matter is being taken forward in an open and positive way with the European Commission. One of the objectives in bringing forward the new inspection system for domestic wastewater treatment systems and the other measures required to fulfil the terms of the judgment is, of course, to seek to minimise or prevent the imposition of financial penalties and fines on Ireland.

Deputy Clare Daly

The purpose of my question is an effort to untangle the Minister's motivation when dealing with this issue. This is proposed to be a measure for dealing with pollution but the key part of a wastewater treatment system is the secondary treatment area which in this case is the percolation area. The Minister's Department has stated that many septic tanks in Ireland do not have an appropriate percolation area and that many areas are not suitable for percolation. Instead of addressing those measures as a pollution issue, the Minister has come up with a bogus scheme to try to get people to sort out this problem for themselves. It is ludicrous. For example, an area such as Gweedore in County Donegal has about 3,000 houses and the Minister is suggesting that individual householders should sort out this issue and pay for it themselves. Those people have been promised a proper treatment plant for decades which would deal with the problems of effluent and pollution. That is the reason I am asking this question. The standards, which the Minister is a little coy about, would reveal that he is not really dealing with the pollution issue at all.

Deputy Phil Hogan

I am sorry Deputy Daly did not avail of the opportunity to have 30 hours of discussions on these matters with Deputy Niall Collins and me at various committee hearings and on the floor of the House. She might have been more informed about what we are trying to do to deal with this very difficult issue.

Deputy Clare Daly

I watched some of it on the television.

Deputy Phil Hogan

It is a difficult issue that dates back to 2009 when there was a proposal to have universal inspection of all septic tanks and to have the EPA code of practice of 2009 implemented. We negotiated with the European Commission. It brought us to court and that is the reason the European Court of Justice judgment was handed down. The Commission needed a comprehensive register of septic tanks in the country and it wanted to ensure that what was there was working. We had the benefit of the Cavan experience. Cavan was excluded from the court judgment because it was satisfied with the by-laws that were introduced in Cavan in 2004. There have been 3,000 inspections in Cavan and we know from the Cavan experience the type of problems that might arise, the extent of those problems and that the vast majority of those inspections passed.

The Gweedore sewerage treatment plant is part of the water investment programme for Donegal County Council and I am sure it will happen in due course. Anybody who wishes to resolve this problem can do so by simply de-sludging their septic tank, in the same way as the people of Cavan have done over the last eight years.

Deputy Clare Daly

It is environmentally unsustainable and probably economic madness to expect people who have septic tanks in relatively densely populated areas to deal with the problem themselves. A best practice environmental solution would be to connect those people to the public sewer. I have followed the deliberations on Committee Stage, as many other people have, and I believe the Minister has avoided responsibility for many of those issues in terms of standards and, crucially, in terms of foisting the burden onto householders. The Minister has not answered those points.

Deputy Phil Hogan

I will be progressing the Gweedore sewerage scheme in line with several other sewerage schemes that are required. Over the last year and a half I have allocated and spent €400 million in places where, perhaps, people did not expect allocations to be made. That is particularly the case in County Galway, where there is a huge problem and huge under-investment in rural as well as urban services.

The European Commission is quite satisfied with our proposals and how we are dealing with this. I will take its word before I will take the Deputy's. It is the body that brought us to court in the first instance and it is satisfied.