Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 16 May 1995

Vol. 452 No. 8

Written Answers. - Drinking Water Quality Standards.

Eoin Ryan

Ceist:

132 Mr. E. Ryan asked the Minister for the Environment if he will set out the division of responsibilities between his Department and the local authority in relation to the maintenance, surveillance and enforcement of water quality standards; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8581/95]

Séamus Hughes

Ceist:

145 Mr. Hughes asked the Minister for the Environment the obligations imposed on local authorities pursuant to EU directive and Irish legislation in relation to private group water schemes whose supply of water is contaminated; and apart from monitoring the quality of the supply, the additional actions that are required from the local authority to protect the health of the consumers and to alert them of the dangers. [8646/95]

Minister for the Environment (Mr. Howlin)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 132 and 145 together.

Drinking water quality standards are at present prescribed by the European Communities (Quality of Water Intended for Human Consumption) Regulations, 1988. Monitoring and enforcement in relation to these standards is for the sanitary authority concerned, subject to reporting of information to the Environmental Protection Agency. The agency co-ordinates an annual report and assessment on drinking water quality.

Where the monitoring of a private water supply indicates that the water quality does not meet the requirements of the 1988 regulations, the sanitary authority is obliged to notify the person or persons responsible for the supply as soon as practicable of the measures which should be taken to improve the quality of the water.

My Department provides capital grants for improvement both of public water supply schemes and of private group water schemes. In the case of group schemes, general advice on design and engineering of works is available to groups from my Department's inspectors. In addition, my Department has published a leaflet entitled "Private Water Supplies: Focus on Quality" which has been widely circulated and is available from county council offices.

As regards maintenance of drinking water quality in public schemes, my Department issued relevant guidelines to local authorities in 1986 and in 1992; the latter focus in particular on preventing and responding promptly to contamination.