Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 July 2022
789. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the status of European Commission enforcement against the State for breaches of the Urban Wastewater Directive; the number of agglomerations still in breach of the directive; the number of households affected in each agglomerations; and the timeline for bringing the wastewater treatment plans in each of these area into compliance. [41623/22]
View answerFollowing a judgment in March 2019 by the Court of Justice of the European Union on Ireland's non-compliance with the urban wastewater treatment directive, my Department, accompanied by Irish Water, met with European Commission officials in June 2019 and proposed a programme of measures to ensure that the findings in the judgment were addressed. My Department is maintaining regular contact with the Commission as the work set out in the programme of measures is progressed and has submitted its fifth report of progress. Works have been completed at 18 of the 28 agglomerations identified in the judgment to bring them into compliance with the Directive.
My Department does not have details on the numbers of households in each agglomeration, that is an issue for Irish Water.
Irish Water continues to develop and implement a long-term investment perspective in order to strategically address the deficiencies in the public water and waste water system. Building water and waste water treatment plants, as well as upgrading or building new water and waste water networks, requires significant and sustained investment. The National Development Plan 2021-2030 provides for significant investment in public water and wastewater infrastructure over the course of the plan to ensure the continued operation, repair and upgrading of Ireland’s water and waste water infrastructure to support social and economic development across the State and ensure compliance with EU Directives.
