I wish to share my time with Deputy Donal Moynihan.
Adjournment Debate. - Blarney (Cork) Water Shortage.
I am sure that is satisfactory and agreed.
I thank the Minister for coming into the House so late in the evening. I wish to highlight a problem that has existed in the village of Blarney and its environs for many years, namely, a shortage of water.
The position is particularly critical this year because we have had so much fine weather. Poor pressure and scarcity of water generally have meant that on several occasions about two weeks ago hundreds of houses in the higher housing estates outside the village were without water for up to ten hours a day, sometimes on three consecutive days. This posed enormous problems for families and residents in those areas who were reduced to primitive conditions through lack of water. In addition, there was the frightening prospect that if a fire broke out on any of those days there would be no water readily available.
Finally, the county council responded. Several times every day tankers of water are brought from the dam at Inniscarra and pumped into the reservoir at Blarney to boost supply to enable householders to cope in this particularly dry summer. That is nothing more than a short term response to an ongoing problem which must be addressed immediately.
Cork County Council is on the point of sanctioning two more major housing schemes in that area. That will put additional pressure on a public water supply that is already inadequate. The same county council has sent a scheme to the Department of the Environment, the contract documents for which have been with the Department since 1987. The amount of money sought at that time was £750,000 to increase the size of the trunk main from Inniscarra to Blarney and increase the storage of the reservoir at Blarney so that the public water supply could cope with the demand from residents and the commercial sector in the village.
The situation is getting worse and is particularly bad this year. This cannot be allowed continue. For that reason I appeal to the Minister to sanction that scheme so that work can commence.
Ba mhaith liom mo bhúiochas a ghabháil do Máirín Ní Quill am a thabhairt dom chun tacaíocht a thabhairt don rún seo.
In 1983 a preliminary report was submitted to the Department by the county council. In 1987 the contract documents were prepared and forwarded to the Department of the Environment. In 1988 the Department confirmed that the documents were in order. However, it was not possible to indicate when the scheme would be allowed to go to tender and construction. The council is still awaiting approval to proceed.
The cost at the time of the application was between £750,000 and £800,000. The project proposed to provide mains and reservoirs to cater for existing and future demands in the area. Quite a number of planning applications have been granted over the years by Cork County Council. This proves that there is a growing population in that area. In the Togher/Cloghroe area alone planning permission has been granted for 100 or more houses this year.
The recent dry spell has resulted in large areas of Blarney being without water. Tank loads of water had to be drawn into the area, approximately 6,000 gallons an hour from 5.30 a.m. to 8 p.m. As Blarney is a famous tourist area I appeal to the Minister to sanction the scheme and to let work begin on the improvement of the water supply to this area.
I thank both Deputies for raising this matter this evening.
At the outset I think it will be understood that the recent spell of extremely dry weather has caused water supply problems in a number of areas in the country. Local authorities have sought to respond to these problems by tightening up on demand management and maximising the output from existing treatment works, in this case by ferrying in additional water supply. However, some supply restrictions have also been necessary. I would like to compliment local authority staffs for their efforts during the current difficult period.
With regard to Blarney, it is accepted that the town has experienced water supply problems over a number of years. The proposed improvement scheme, for which the contract documents are with my Department, envisages the laying of about 6,500 metres of 300 millimetre trunk mains from Inniscarra to the Blarney reservoir, together with the construction of additional storage at the reservoir. The scheme as designed would cost about £1 million. In common with many other worthwhile projects around the country it simply has not been possible to progress this proposal due to pressure of other priority schemes in the water and sewerage programme.
Considerable progress has been made in recent years in improving the water supply in the South Cork area with in excess of £8 million being invested over the past five years. Water projects that have been completed include schemes at Riverstown/Glanmire, Dundurrow/ Kinsale and Carrigaline. Within the wider south-west region in the current year I have approved tenders for major water schemes in Dingle, Macroom and Schull. This represents a continuing commitment to the region which should be recognised. At the same time I am unfortunately not in a position to approve every proposed scheme.
Despite the fact that we are spending a historically high sum of money improving water supplies around the country, the demand will always be greater than the resources at my disposal.
The prioritisation of schemes under the water and sewerage programme must take into account a wide range of economic, environmental and public health-safety considerations. Statutory requirements including those under the drinking water and urban waste water directives must be met. I have also sought to maintain a reasonable balance between the major public schemes and smaller projects under the group water and small schemes programmes. The competition for funding is such, however, that I and my predecessors have been forced to make hard choices.
I am not in a position to approve the contract documents at this time for this scheme. I can, however, assure the House, and both Deputies that while I cannot provide funds in the current year I will continue to bear in mind the concerns which they have expressed tonight in assessing priorities in future.