The Water Framework Directive requires that abstractions of surface water or ground water which are likely to have a significant impact on water status must be regulated. As such, Ireland must develop a register of, and a regulatory control system for, water abstraction points. My Department is currently examining how best to address this requirement in a proportionate and efficient way and it has convened a working group to consider the issues arising and to make recommendations. While no decisions will be made on this matter until extensive research and public consultation is undertaken, it would be my intention that a proportionate abstraction control regime will effectively manage abstraction risks and pressures without imposing unnecessary regulatory burden. Recognising the relatively low abstraction pressures in Ireland it is expected that a regime would focus on the most significant abstraction volumes and pressures recognising that the Directive does not require the registration and licencing of private wells serving individual domestic dwellings. The initial research phase, which will take up much of 2015, will provide a basis for my Department to engage in extensive consultation with the key sectors and with the wider public.
Irish Water has sent out customer application packs and letters to all households to enable customers to confirm their details and to ensure that a correct and up-to-date database of customers exists. As part of this process, households who are not customers of Irish Water, such as owners of private wells and waste water treatment systems, are requested to confirm this to the company so that they are not charged as customers in error. Furthermore, by registering these details, such households become eligible for the water conservation grant if it is their primary residence. These are the only purposes for which such information will be used.
