‘NO’ TO VARTRY WATER PLANT
Ashford residents say new plant will reduce flow of river by two thirds
LOCALS IN ASHFORD have vowed to fight tooth and nail to stop a new water treatment plant being developed at Vartry.
Last week Wicklow County Council granted permission for the plant, which Irish Water says will secure the water supply for the long-term.
However, several local groups are opposed to the new plant, particularly as an environmental impact statement wasn’t requested by the council as part of the planning process.
Matthew Weiss, a member of the Ashford Development Association, said there is wide scale opposition to the plant locally. He said that if allowed to go ahead, the plant will reduce the flow of the Vartry River by two thirds.
A meeting will be held at 7.30 p.m. on Friday in the Ashford Community and Heritage Centre
“We need people from all over demanding that the needs of the environment be taken into account”
LOCALS IN Ashford are up in arms after proposals to develop a new water treatment plant at Vartry were given the green light.
Last week Wicklow County Council granted permission for the new water treatment plant on the site of the existing plant at Vartry. Irish Water says that this treatment plant, along with other planned upgrades to the existing site, will secure the water supply for the long-term and ensure the Vartry scheme meets all drinking water standards.
Currently treated water from Vartry provides drinking water for one of the most densely populated areas in the country. The supply area stretches through north Wicklow to south Dublin and serves more than 200,000 people.
The plant was originally constructed in the 1860s and was a feat of engineering for its time, which involved the building of two reservoirs, a water treatment plant, a four kilometre long tunnel under Callowhill and 60 kilometres of trunk main to deliver water to the supply area.
Irish Water said that the Vartry scheme is a priority for them given its importance to so many people in Wicklow, Dún Laoghaire and other areas of south Dublin.
Geoff O’Sullivan, Project Manager with Irish Water said: ‘We welcome this planning permission as an important step in securing the drinking water to the Vartry Water Supply area of north Wicklow and south Dublin. The scheme has had no major upgrade since it was built over 150 years ago and is now in need of urgent investment. Irish Water will invest up to €200 million in the upgrade of this priority project.’
However Cllr Jennifer Whitmore has raised concerns about the project.
‘Planning permission was granted by Wicklow County Council last week to Irish Water for a €200m upgrade to the Vartry Reservoir, which will provide a new treatment plant and replace much of the ageing pipework in the system.
‘Whilst I welcome the investment in securing water supply for the county, I am concerned about some of the unintended consequences of this project. In particular, how it may impact on the Vartry, an EU designated salmonoid river, which is downstream of the reservoir.
‘ The upgrade will mean that any water that normally leaks from the 150 year old reservoir will now be retained by the new pipework. This upgrade in efficiency will mean that up to two thirds of the water, that normally flows into the Vartry, will now not make it down into the river. This could have a significant impact on both the fish stocks and the underlying ecology of the system,’ she said.
‘Unfortunately, an Environmental Impact Statement was not submitted as part of the planning process. The provision of such an assessment would be normally standard for a project of this size and I believe that, as a result, we do not have a clear picture of how this work will impact on the surrounding environment and, in particular, the River Vartry.’
Her views are supported by members of the Ashford Development Association who have organised a public meeting for this Friday night at 7.30pm in the Community and Heritage Centre in Ashford to prepare an appeal to An Bord Pleanala.
Matthew Weiss, who is a member of the group and also spokesperson for the River Vartry Protection Group, has also started on online petition in a bid to overturn the decision.
He said Irish Water have been given permission for the plant ‘without the benefit of an Environmental Impact Assessment and widespread objection from the Ashford Community and the River Vartry Protection Society who represent the Riparian owners living beside the river.
‘ The River Vartry is an EU Protected Salmonoid River but even with that protection and the fish managing with the current lack of water, their plan will reduce the water flowing in the River Vartry by two thirds of its current flow. The EU River Basin Management Document requires the government to negotiate ‘compensatory flows’ for the river, but instead of getting more, we are going to get one third of the current flow.
‘Our option at the moment is to take the case to An Bord Pleanála. We need to be able to make a good case at An Bord Pleanála for sending Irish Water back to produce a full Environmental Impact Assessment, which will allow us to participate, as a stakeholder, and make sure the River Vartry is safe.
‘Wicklow County Council should have insisted on this but with Irish Water’s unclear charter, they looked at them as Government not a private company with the vested interest of selling more water to Dublin.
‘We need people from all over, speaking out and demanding that the need of the environment be taken into account. If we destroy all our best rivers now, our children will be seeing salmon, sea trout, otters and all the other protected species of the River Vartry in the Natural History Museum.’
Matthew said that the group plan to engage the services of an environmental solicitor or barrister as well as a Hydrologist/ Hydrogeologist to give expert witness.
He sad that Irish Water has ‘continually reversed its position and science in going through the planning process. Every time we found a weakness, they changed their plan to another one.
‘We will be requesting an oral hearing which is only given for very few circumstances. One circumstance is to be able to prove that this is of major public concern.’
Matthew said the appeal must be lodged with An Bord Pleanala by December 19 but said that if they are not successful with the appeal they will consider taking the case to the High Court and, if necessary, the Supreme Court.
The construction of the new water treatment plant is a key element of the Irish Water Vartry Water Supply Upgrade Project, which also includes the decommissioning of the existing water treatment plant and existing tunnel to allow for re-mediation works to be carried out. A separate application for the replacement of the existing tunnel with a pipeline has been made by Irish Water to Wicklow County Council.
Although no additional water will be abstracted from the reservoir, the upgrade works will also enable the extension of the water supply network from Vartry to other areas of Mid Wicklow including Rathdrum, Aughrim, Avoca, Ballinaclash, Roundwood, Laragh, Annamoe, Redcross, Conary and Glenealy. These areas are currently served by water sources which have been identified by the EPA as being at risk of failure to meet the current drinking water regulations.