Water crisis: now wasters face court threat in hose ban
PEOPLE who waste water during the hosepipe ban face the threat of being brought to court.
As Irish Water warned the current ban would be extended “across the country” in the coming days, it signalled those who persistently waste water would not go unpunished.
Persistent breaches of the hosepipe ban and a refusal to pay the €125 fine will land homeowners before a judge.
The utility said that, while it did not want to take people to court, it would “review its options in the case of a persistent breach of the order combined with a refusal to pay the on-the-spot fine”.
The ban is in place in the greater Dublin area from today. However, more areas will be included in a bid to tackle the crisis caused by drought on a scale not seen in decades.
Restrictions are being imposed on water supplies in various communities nationwide and it is these areas that are now most at risk of an extension of the hosepipe ban.
Met Éireann said temperatures would reach 28C today.
IRISH householders were warned to keep sun creams and cool drinks at the ready as the country can expect another week of hot, dry weather.
However, Met Éireann stressed that the coming days won’t see a return to the near-record temperatures of last week – when Ireland sweltered in a St Tropez-like 32C.
Instead, the coming week will see temperatures of between 22C and 27C with the best of the weather in the east, south-east and midlands.
The south and west are likely to see some cloudier conditions with the odd shower, particularly over Cork and Kerry.
But Met Éireann has warned that little or no significant rainfall is predicted for Ireland over the next five days, with a Status Yellow drought warning now in place.
The drought warning will remain in place until July 6 – though farmers and livestock owners are worried it could be extended still further.
A Status Yellow heat warning was in place until 9pm yesterday as temperatures soared close to 28C – though parts of the west, due to cloud and mist, struggled to make 22C.
Today, temperatures are expected to rise to almost 27C though some areas may prove cooler due to haze and cloud.
Coastal areas will again be several degrees cooler due to sea breezes.
The Department of Agriculture and Coillte again warned that a Status Red forest fire alert remains in place.
Last weekend witnessed two major blazes in Wicklow and Cork, the latter of which, at Marlogue outside Cobh, may have been caused by an incorrectly doused campfire.
To date, major forest and gorse fires have erupted in Dublin, Wicklow, Cork, Limerick and Galway.
Coillte again appealed to people not to light campfires or barbecues in unapproved locations, never to dispose of hot ash or cigarettes in a forest, and not to dump glass near vegetation as it could accidentally ignite in intense sunlight.
Falling water levels in Irish
rivers, lakes and reservoirs have also threatened sporting events.
A major Cork regatta only went ahead after 11th-hour checks that water levels were sufficient.
Irish Water Safety (IWS) appealed to people to take care and not to underestimate the dangers, despite falling river and lake levels, after a 43-year-old man drowned in the River Shannon in Limerick on Saturday.
The Irish Cancer Society (ICS) also renewed its warning for people to take proper precautions to protect their skin in the sun.