Thousands at risk by drinking unclean private water supplies
EPA is calling for urgent action
THOUSANDS of people are putting their lives at risk by drinking from private water supplies that are unclean or untested.
Bacteria and chemical contamination are the main problems in tested supplies, but many are not checked at all because they are unregistered or exempt from regulation.
An Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report says the quality of water supplied “is not good enough and is putting health at risk”.
It calls on the Department of Housing to put in place better oversight for the sector.
One million people across the country depend on private supplies for their drinking water because they are not connected to public mains.
More than 400 are group schemes which only come under regulation if they supply 50 or more people or 10,000 litres of water a day.
A further 1,750 are classified as “small private supplies” which typically supply hotels, B&Bs, pubs and restaurants, creches, nursing homes and schools.
One in five of those known about were not monitored in 2019, the year examined by the EPA, and the agency believes there may be many others that are not registered.
Around 180,000 households also get their water from private wells and they do not come under any drinking water regulations.
Of the 417 private group schemes monitored during the year, 20 failed standards relating to bacteria, as did 88 of the small private supplies. E-coli, which can cause serious stomach problems, was the main issue.
“This failure in more than 100 private water supplies is of significant concern to the EPA as some of these bacteria can make people very ill, particularly young children, the elderly, or those who are immunocompromised,” the report says.
Twenty-five supplies were in breach of nitrate contamination levels. Nitrates enter the water through fertilisers and human and animal waste.
Twelve supplies breached limits for trihalomethanes (THMs) which form when chemicals used for disinfection react with natural organic matter in the water. THMs are classified by health authorities as possibly carcinogenic.
“Disinfection is the most important aspect of providing safe drinking water, so the challenge is to minimise the amount of trihalomethanes formed, while still ensuring that disinfection is effective,” theEPAsaid.
The agency said it was also concerned that 19pc of registered small private supplies were not monitored at all in 2019.
“If a supply has not been monitored, it makes it impossible to be confident that this water is safe to drink,” it said.
The report notes that the Department of Housing has committed funding to carry out remedial works on a number of group water schemes by the end of this year but it urges further action.
“It is critical that the Department puts in place an improved governance framework and supports for the rural water sector so that the appropriate actions can be taken to improve these supplies and ensure public health is protected,” it said.
Dr Tom Ryan, director of the EPA’s Office of Environmental Enforcement, also urged local authorities to review their registers of private supplies to make sure they were accurate and up to date.
Of the 340 registered small private supplies that went untested in 2019, Cork County Council was responsible for 259. The report says some local authorities reported difficulties in accessing premises to carry out testing.
Dr Ryan reminded water suppliers it was also their responsibility to ensure their supply was safe.
“It is critical that monitoring is undertaken and, if issues are identified, action must be taken to protect human health,” he said.
‘If issues are identified, action must be taken’