An Irish Planning Students Blog » Environment

Transport plan would transform green

Colin Broderick — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 11:31:27 +0000

I can’t say I’m a major fan of the look of the new green with the lovely mature trees removed. But I suppose it is a necessary evil in order to get these much need projects off the ground. Maybe some new trees can be planted and it will look as fantastic as it does now in like 20 years. My major concern is what is going to happen to the lake, its the best feature and it will be a huge loss to the amenity of the park! Assuming it gets through planning successfully! My two cents at least.

Frank McDonald of the The Irish Times writes:

ST STEPHEN’S Green will be the principal casualty of the Government’s plans to go ahead with Metro North and Dart Underground, it is now clear from the environmental impact statement (EIS) on each of these costly projects.

The current construction cost estimate for Dart Underground, which is planned as the central spine of Dublin’s commuter rail services, is €2.5 billion. No figures are officially available for Metro North, but in 2005 it was estimated to cost €4.58 billion.

The Dart Underground EIS says construction of a shared station below ground at St Stephen’s Green as well as ventilation/intervention structures “will introduce major changes to the landscape and visual character and setting of the park”.

Describing these as the “most significant townscape and visual impacts” of the two projects, it says changes would include the temporary removal of some sections of boundary railings and park features as well as the felling of dozens of mature trees.

“The construction phase will result in significant impact on the landscape and visual amenity of the park, particularly from within the park, where the existing sense of ‘escape from the city’ will be lost” – at least until new semi-mature trees re-establish it.

DART Underground Route Schematic

The “ventilation/intervention” structure, to be built immediately behind the railings on the north side of the green, would be up to 4.2m high and 23.7m long; it would be impossible to provide screening for this building.

As the EIS on Metro North makes clear, most of the northwestern quadrant of St Stephen’s Green would be directly affected by the excavations for the two linked underground stations – including the lake populated by ducks, swans and waterhens.

It is understood that an earlier proposal by the Railway Procurement Agency to remove the Fusiliers’ Arch, facing the top of Grafton Street, has been reconsidered; instead, it would be retained in situ while the area around it is excavated to a considerable depth.

Hundreds of trucks would be needed to remove the spoil from the excavations for underground stations at St Stephen’s Green as well as O’Connell Bridge, Parnell Square East, the Mater hospital and other locations along the route of Metro North.

In the case of Dart Underground, the existing open-air amphitheatre at the Civic Offices on Wood Quay would be replaced by a “new urban civic space” that would include the entrance to an underground station north of Christ Church Cathedral.

This “will change the visual character and function of the space”, as the EIS says. “Nearby, a new ventilation structure will be introduced to the south side of the Church of the Immaculate Conception on Cook Street” – commonly known as Merchant’s Quay Church.

DART Underground Railway Order

During excavation works for each underground station, spoil would be removed by a fleet of trucks; in the case of St Stephen’s Green, there would be 198 truck movements per day in each direction – and this traffic would continue for 20 months.

It is also clear from the EIS that passengers seeking to connect with the existing Dart line at Pearse Station, Westland Row, would face a long walk as the new underground station is proposed to be built at the junction of Boyne Street and Sandwith Street.

The twin tunnels for Dart Underground, from Inchicore to Docklands, would be be excavated by a tunnel boring machine similar to that used in excavating the Dublin Port Tunnel. Additional excavation work would be required for the five underground stations.

“Significant works” are proposed within the historic Inchicore railway yards, “with the demolition of many existing buildings and the provision of a new station facility that will open up the site to greater public access”. This is being opposed by a local group.

August 18th is the deadline for making submissions to An Bord Pleanála on CIÉ’s application for a Railway Order. The four-volume EIS is available for public inspection at An Bord Pleanála, 64 Marlborough Street, Dublin 1; Civic Offices, Wood Quay, Dublin 8; Heuston Station; Pearse Station; and Inchicore Works, Dublin 8. It may also be viewed on dart undergroundrailwayorder.ie

IrishTimes

Dublin height focus of planning debate

Colin Broderick — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 04:30:41 +0000

Decisions made this week by Dublin city councillors will determine the height and scale of future developments, writes FRANK MACDONALD

WHETHER NEW buildings in Dublin should be relatively high or low has become the most contentious issue confronting councillors as they begin a series of special meetings today to deal with the draft Dublin City Development Plan 2011-2017.

On the one hand, An Taisce maintains the current draft prepared by city planners “will fuel a future splurge of land speculation and undermine decades of the planning control that has maintained Dublin as a historic low-rise major European city”.

On the other, the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) has warned that attempts by councillors to cap building heights “would result in the relocation of office and other commercial development outside Dublin . . . and act as a serious deterrent to urban regeneration”.

Maybe not what they are aiming for but it could happen!

At issue is what constitutes a “high-rise” building. According to the planners, it would be 16 storeys or more, with “medium-rise” defined as eight to 16 storeys and “low-rise” as up to eight storeys – roughly double the prevailing building height in the core of the city.

Several councillors are seeking to reinstate a key paragraph in the current city plan that is omitted from the draft.

This states that the council “acknowledges the intrinsic quality of Dublin as a low- to medium-rise city and considers that it should predominantly remain so.

“Taller building clusters . . . are only likely to be achieved in the Docklands, at Heuston and in the larger predominantly non-residential key developing areas, where there is good public transport links and sites of sufficient size to create their own character.”

According to the planners, continuing with this policy “would seriously undermine the strategic approach to developing areas” such as Grangegorman and the zones around Connolly Station and Tara Street station, where further high-rise development is envisaged.

The planners say they have “no objection” to a more specific definition of low-rise “provided it does not result in a policy cap of 18m (six-storey residential or four-storey office) over the city, as several of the amendments tabled by councillors are now seeking to do.

“The essential proposition in these motions is that . . . the definition of high should be reduced from 50m to 30m with mid-rise defined as 18m to 30m; and all the remaining areas of the city to be retained at a maximum height of 18m”, the manager’s report says.

This “would have severe repercussions for the city in relation to economic renewal and competitiveness”, it warns, adding that the “inevitable result would be a flight of office development” to surrounding local authority areas and “less rates income”.

The planners also maintain that a 30m-cap on medium-rise buildings would “inevitably result in bulky ‘groundscapers’ rather than more elegant buildings such as Liberty Hall” (now planned to be demolished), saying this would “undermine the character of the city”. They say a six-storey cap on residential development would also “undermine the promotion of vibrant new, mixed-use neighbourhoods”, such as Herberton (built on the site of Fatima Mansions), where the height ranges from three to eight storeys.

An amendment by some councillors seeking an “urban design statement” on all proposals two storeys higher than existing buildings in the vicinity is “considered unduly onerous” by the planners, given the “numerous safeguards” incorporated in the draft plan.

Their drive for more height and density in the city is strongly endorsed by the CIF.

Its director of planning, Hubert Fitzpatrick, said if proposed caps were imposed in certain areas, “investment . . . will go elsewhere, representing a significant opportunity cost for the entire economy”.

Limits on the height of apartment buildings would “push developments away from areas that have seen substantial investment in public transportation and related physical and social infrastructure”, resulting in “further urban sprawl and continued underdevelopment”.

But An Taisce’s heritage officer, Ian Lumley, said it was clear that the city council’s management was “pushing through” a new Draft Development Plan for adoption by elected councillors, intended to fuel a future property boom by “scrapping” existing controls on height.

“Amid the general fiasco that has characterised Irish planning over the last 60 years, there was at least one achievement of maintaining Dublin as one of Europe’s low-rise major historic cities”, he said.

For whatever reason, this was to be “disregarded” by the draft plan.

“Rather that providing clarity, the plan is going to create years of planning rows and appeals to An Bord Pleanála if a new boom is generated,” he said.

“It would only take a few badly sited out-of-scale buildings to irrevocably damage the city’s irreplaceable character.”

Irish Times

No water reserves in Dublin – report

Colin Broderick — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 19:17:12 +0000

WATER SUPPLY in the greater Dublin area is on a knife-edge, with demand likely to outstrip available reserves within a few years, according to a report prepared by consultants for seven local authorities.

The capital has no strategic reserves of water when it should have 10-20 per cent reserves at a minimum, while existing sources are operating near sustainable limits, the report by consultants RPS-Veolia JV states.

Dublin city councillors this week approved the consultants’ main proposal to bring excess water from the basin of the Shannon river to meet needs in the east and midlands.

The decision was taken by the council’s environment and engineering strategic policy committee (SPC) following a presentation by the consultants working for the Dublin Supply Project.

Dublin Supply Project Options © RPS Engineering

It is expected to be confirmed by the entire council later this year and will then go to An Bord Pleanála following a six-month consultation period.

The plan, the first major water supply project since the Liffey was dammed at Poulaphouca and Leixlip in the 1940s, will cost €470 million to construct over 10 years, with annual operational costs ranging from €8-15 million.

The report says the Dublin region is again approaching the stage where new long-term, secure and sustainable supplies of water are critical to its development and to the performance of the State.

“It has to be done; there is no other way,” said Fine Gael councillor Naoise Ó Muirí, who chairs the environment and engineering SPC.

The cost of operating desalination plants was too high, while international experience showed it was very difficult to reduce leakage below 20 per cent, he added.

There are currently four main water treatment plants in the greater Dublin region, which includes Kildare, north Wicklow and parts of Co Meath in addition to the capital. Their maximum output is between 540 and 550 million litres per day, while under normal circumstances demand is between 530 and 540 million litres per day.

The lack of space capacity in the Dublin system contrasts with Paris, where three treatment plants operate at just 60 per cent capacity.

The report says the fragility of the situation was starkly illustrated when increased leakages caused by last January’s cold snap led to restrictions in supply.

Leakage from the system has been reduced from 42 per cent in 1996 to 28 per cent in 2002, but the report says that the maximum supply levels will be reached in the 2020s despite further efforts to reduce leakage.

The report also points out that customer leakage losses average 65 litres per property per day, broadly comparable to the UK. It says this figure could be halved following the introduction of water metering.

“If a new source is not provided, the consequences would be supply restrictions of increasing frequency with impacts on social and economic interests combined with constraints on new development including employment generation in the region,” it warns.

A number of multinationals with plants in the region, such as Diageo, Intel and Wyeth, have expressed concern about the security and/or quality of water supplies, it is understood.

The report considered 10 different supply options, seven of them with the Shannon as the source, as well as a number of sites for desalination.

The preferred option, which involves taking the water from a point north of Lough Derg and piping it to a reservoir at a cutaway bog at Garryhinch, close to Portarlington, Co Laois, where it would be treated and distributed, involved the minimum cost, according to the consultants.

The Shannon proposal has met strong opposition from communities in the region, and local and national politicians.

IrishTimes

Poolbeg incinerator developers seek meeting with Cowen

Colin Broderick — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 09:34:57 +0000

It looks as if the Poolbeg Incinerator row is going to turn into a major political quagmire in the not so distant future!

THE DEVELOPERS of the €350 million incinerator proposed for Poolbeg in Dublin, which is opposed by Minister for the Environment John Gormley, have requested a meeting with Taoiseach Brian Cowen.

Scott Whitney, president of Covanta Europe, told a press conference in Dublin yesterday the company had been in touch with Mr Cowen’s office. “We’ve suggested that at some point a meeting with the Taoiseach might be useful,” Mr Whitney said.

A spokeswoman for the Taoiseach confirmed the request for a meeting had been received and said it was “under consideration”. The proposed incinerator would be located in Mr Gormley’s constituency of Dublin South East.

Mr Gormley’s spokesman said: “This Government will not be dictated to by a private company into changing its waste policy. The aim of Government is to have a waste policy that looks after the interests of taxpayers, consumers and the environment.”

Mr Gormley last week published a draft waste policy plan which would make such incinerators unviable economically.

Mr Whitney insisted the proposed facility was not too large, adding: “Covanta’s always been confident that this project is correctly sized.”

Referring to the Minister’s preferred waste management solution, mechanical biological treatment (MBT), Mr Whitney said: “Why would the Ministry for the Environment want Dubliners to pay more for a less environmentally friendly process?”

He said the proposed project had been extensively vetted, reviewed and approved by “so many Government agencies that I can hardly keep track of them anymore”. He said the application for a foreshore licence was lodged in December 2008 and was still pending.

Referring to Mr Gormley, Mr Whitney said: “It seems to us that he’s saying, in his role as a judge relative to this situation, I know you’re guilty but I’ll give you a fair trial before I hang you.”

Mr Whitney said the construction process had been suspended since May 7th, although site clearance and some excavation had been carried out, “and we’re ready to ramp up at any time when the circumstances dictate”. He claimed the lack of a foreshore licence was holding up the project.

Asked if Covanta would consider suing the State if the project did not go ahead, he said “we wouldn’t rule anything out at this point”.

Mr Whitney said that Covanta had invested “tens of millions of euro to date” in the Poolbeg project.

IrishTimes

Bog in Offaly chosen as proposed site for reservoir

Colin Broderick — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 09:01:59 +0000

Tim O’Brien from the IrishTimes:

A 500-ACRE bog in Co Offaly has been chosen as the proposed site for an “eco water park and reservoir” as part of Dublin City Council’s plan to pump water from the river Shannon.

The council is proposing a €540 million, Government-funded project which would supply 350 million litres of water a day to the Dublin region.

In a move likely to meet strong opposition from west of Ireland interests, the council is seeking to source water from the Shannon to serve the capital’s drinking water needs for the next 70 years.

The council says the project would also supply water to residents and businesses in Meath, Wicklow, Kildare, Offaly and Westmeath. In a statement yesterday, the council said the project would create an “innovative water based eco-park with fishing, boating, cycling, water and leisure sports” in the midlands.

Veloia Water a joint partner in the Project

It said 1,000 construction jobs would be created alongside an unspecified number of long-term tourism and recreation jobs in the midlands. Consultants for the council, RPS and Veolia Water, envisage the water being taken from the Shannon at Lough Derg during periods of flood and high flows only.

The water would be stored at the new “eco park” at Garryhinch Bog, from where it could be pumped to Dublin or even back to the Shannon to be used during periods of low flows, according to the consultants.

The Shannon is subject to considerable flooding in winter but navigation hazards are frequently exposed in times of drought.

The average amount of water to be taken from Lough Derg under the proposal is 2 per cent. Consultants say this water currently flows into the Atlantic ocean every day.

Bord na Móna has expressed support for the project which is seen as being in line with its new corporate strategy. The board has recently received approval for new wind generated energy to supply up to 45,000 homes and the consultants claim this could be used to power the proposed midlands eco park. Details of the plans to take water from the Shannon are to be presented to the city council’s strategic policy committee on Thursday.

An environmental impact statement process will be undertaken and a planning application submitted to An Bord Pleanála, which will make the final decision on the project. The project does not require the permission of any local authority in the Shannon region, but would be dependent on funding from the Government.

Shannon Water Protection Alliance chairman Martin McEnroe said yesterday plans would be considered and given a measured response. But he said it made little sense under any national spatial strategy to locate factories and people on the east coast and to pump resources there to follow them.

“What happens if someone wants to open a factory in Athlone and there isn’t the capacity in the water system there” he asked. “This looks like it will prevent people remaining in the midlands where they grew up.”

Cowen urged to ‘show his hand’ on Dublin incinerator

Colin Broderick — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 08:53:39 +0000

TAOISEACH BRIAN Cowen has been challenged to “show his hand” over the Poolbeg incinerator and declare whether it is Government policy to allow it proceed or to be scrapped.

Fine Gael environment spokesman Phil Hogan said that it was now incumbent on Mr Cowen to state his position on the planned Dublin regional waste incinerator.

Last week Mr Gormley published a draft waste policy plan which strongly favours mechanical and biological treatment of waste over incineration.

If implemented, it would have the effect of making a large incinerator like Poolbeg unviable.

Mr Hogan said yesterday that Mr Cowen had merely welcomed the consultation process that will now take place in relation to the draft policy.

He claimed that Mr Cowen was “sitting on the fence” despite Fianna Fáil TDs from Dublin, notably the Dublin North deputy Michael Kennedy, supporting the project.

“The Taoiseach has remained silent on one of the major issues of the day and one in which a Minister of his Government has become personally involved in,” said Mr Hogan.

Mr Hogan asserted that Mr Gormley was not in a position to adjudicate on the foreshore licence for Poolbeg as he has a clear conflict of interest.

“Ministers for the environment in the bad old days adjudicated on planning decisions which was wrong. The Minister has to be seen to be above that.

“There is the potential liability of hundreds of millions of euro in the event of a proven case of breach of contract if this does not go ahead,” said Mr Hogan.

The planned facility at Poolbeg has a capacity of 600,000 tonnes. A “put-or-pay” clause requires the four Dublin local authorities to supply a minimum of 320,000 tonnes per annum.

Under the Minister’s proposals, the volume of waste going to incineration would be far less than that.

Dublin City Council yesterday warned that any variation on the contract to build a Dublin regional waste incinerator at Poolbeg could have serious financial repercussions, raising the possibility of a compensation claim.

However, that contention was rejected by Mr Gormley as “scaremongering”.

An authorised officer was commissioned by Mr Gormley’s department last March to examine various issues surrounding Poolbeg, including compensation.

The officer, John Hennessy, is due to report to Mr Gormley this week.

The City Council said it would examined the draft waste policy over the coming weeks but emphasised it was in a contractual situation for the construction of the plant.

Scott Whitney of Covanta, the developers of the incinerator, said there will be more than enough residual waste for Poolbeg, even when Dublin achieves its recycling target of 59 per cent.

IrishTimes

Gormley rejects Poolbeg claims

Colin Broderick — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 08:32:49 +0000

Minister for the Environment John Gormley has rejected as “scaremongering” and “absolute nonsense” claims that the State will face massive EU fines for landfill waste if the controversial Poolbeg incinerator does not go ahead.

The Minister also said he would this week receive the report of the “authorised officer” he appointed in March to examine the contract between Dublin City Council and a consortium to build the €350 million incinerator.

Senior counsel and accountant John Hennessy was appointed to carry out an independent examination of the Poolbeg contract, including an examination of its financial implications in Dublin.

His remit included assessment of the financial risks should Dublin City Council and the three other Dublin local authorities be unable to meet the volumes of waste committed to in the “put-or-pay” clause of the contract, which requires the council to provide 320,000 tonnes of residual waste every year. The report may also look at the issue of compensation should the Poolbeg project be repudiated or scaled down.

As the war of words continued in the wake of the Minister’s publication last week of a draft waste policy plan which would make large incinerators such as Poolbeg unviable, Mr Gormley insisted Ireland was compliant with EU directives.

North Dublin Fianna Fail TD Michael Kennedy this morning insisted he had no reservations about the plant and called on Mr Gormley to grant a foreshore licence so the project can proceed.

Mr Kennedy told RTE Radio there was an agreement in place with Covanta Energy to run the plant and that a company that enters a contract has a right to compensation if it does not proceed.

Mr Kennedy would not be drawn on claims Mr Gormley had a conflict of interests in the plant as it was located in his constituency.

Mr Gormley said there was a “co-ordinated campaign saying we’re going to be facing fines. That’s absolutely untrue. It’s scaremongering. I would never allow anything like that to happen as Minister. I’ve been probably the most vigilant Minister in trying to deal with EU directives. I’ve made sure that the waste hierarchy is the thing that we abide by.”

He insisted Ireland would meet its waste management targets for 2010, and said the proponents of the Poolbeg incinerator “want the Minister to come in on his white steed and say ‘oh don’t worry, I’m going to make things nice for you’. Well, I’m not.”

Mr Gormley added: “I’m going ahead with my policy. I will be introducing the levy system.”
Ireland has “the lowest landfill prices in Europe. We have to have a landfill levy because we have to abide by the landfill directive.”

The Minister believed the “path we are pursuing is by far and away the most sustainable path in terms of waste management”. The local authorities “don’t want it because it conflicts totally with their ambition to construct a 600,000 tonnes incinerator”.

He said: “They cannot feed the beast at the moment. It’s just too big. They know that. The only way they can do that is by controlling the waste. They can’t do that in light of the McKechnie judgment.”

The High Court ruled in December 2009 that the council had abused its dominant position in the Dublin waste market by adopting a variation of its 1998 waste management plan, decreeing that waste would only be collected by the four local authorities or their chosen contractors.

Mr Gormley said the authorities wanted him to introduce legislation to reverse the McKechnie judgment. “I’m saying to you absolutely that I’m not going to do it.”

The local authorities, he added, “don’t control the waste”.

IrishTimes

Cork to get localised flood defences

Colin Broderick — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 13:22:52 +0000

NEW MEASURES to reduce the risk of flooding in Cork city could be in place within 18 months, according to Cork city manager Joe Gavin, following confirmation that the OPW is to appoint consultants to oversee the project.

Mr Gavin confirmed the OPW had opted for localised flood defences on the Lee upstream of Cork city which would allow the ESB to discharge higher volumes of water from Inniscarra dam without causing flooding in the city centre.

He said the proposal, which involves localised work and changes to the ESB operating regime, was less costly and more easily implemented than another proposal which involved building tidal barriers and raising quay walls which would cost €145 million and take several years.

Details of the proposal were set out in the Draft Lee Catchment Flood-Risk Management Plan which was drawn up by the OPW following the November 2009 flood and which was presented by Mr Gavin to members of Cork City Council this week.

Mr Gavin said under the localised proposal consultants would be appointed by the OPW to identify areas upstream of the city where work needed to be carried out to enable the ESB to release water at higher volumes without causing flooding.

He said the project would also examine quay walls and bridges in the city where flood waters from the Lee could spill into the city centre.

“This scheme is less costly than the other option and can also be introduced more quickly – consultants are going to be appointed and I believe that it could be in place within 18 months because much of the work relates to management procedures at the ESB dams.”

An ESB spokeswoman confirmed that the company had been working with the OPW on the Lee flood-risk and management study.

IrishTimes

Flower power to yield €15,000 windfall

Colin Broderick — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 09:33:16 +0000

FARMERS ARE to receive Government payments of up to €15,000 annually for producing wild, rare flowers such as the Mountain Aven and the Spring Gentian.

Described as a “unique” scheme yesterday by Burren Irish Farmers’ Association chairman Michael Davoren, the plan is part of a joint €4 million Department of Agriculture and Department of the Environment initiative aimed at conserving the biodiversity of the Burren, Co Clare.

The model has been developed over the past five years in a pilot programme by BurrenLife across 20 farms in the area and is now to be rolled out across 100 Burren farms over the next three years.

Minister for Agriculture Brendan Smith has confirmed that €3 million will be made in direct payments to farmers over three years. Moreover, Minister for the Environment John Gormley has said his department is to spend €1 million overseeing the work.

The project director with BurrenLife, Dr Brendan Dunford, said that “one of the pioneering aspects to the programme is that farmers are going to be paid for producing species-rich grassland and that will determine the level of payment to them”.

Dr Dunford cited Mountain Avens, Spring Gentians and orchids as examples of flowers that make up species-rich grassland in the Burren.

Mr Davoren said Burren farmers were responding to the market where there is now a demand for “species-rich grassland and a pristine environment”.

“The only way we can earn a living is by looking after the environment. It is a totally new concept and we will embrace it,” he said. “There will be a plan for every field and for every farm.”

Dr Dunford said the programme would have a “tremendous impact” on the Burren landscape.

In the scheme, farmers are to be graded on a zero to 10 basis with only fields having a score more than four becoming eligible for payments. Farmers who score 10 can expect to receive a payment of €100 per hectare per annum for the first 40 hectares. Farmers will also receive payments for carrying out capital works and for protection of EU protected designated lands. Closing date for applications to participate in the scheme is May 17th.

IrishTimes

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Engineers Ireland – Urge Public to conserve water

Colin Broderick — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 20:22:22 +0000

Ireland needs to reach a stage where everybody in society feels responsible for the management of the water on their property rather than thinking it is solely a local authority issue, a conference in Cork heard today.

©*KarenT*'s (www.flickr.com)

Kevin Murray, who has worked as a consultant engineer for 20 years, told the Engineers Ireland annual conference the challenges facing the installation of water meters were considerable but achievable if old models which have not served us well were abandoned.

Earlier this week, Minister for the Environment John Gormley announced plans to install water meters in homes next year ahead of the introduction of water charges.

“The industry is suggesting that the meter installation could be done in three years with 300 to 350 two-person crews. We don’t have that many experienced crews,” Mr Murray said. “I would like to see Fás working with industry to develop training courses so that we can create more metering crews from our unemployed construction sector. Otherwise we will be importing resources for this metering programme.”

Mr Murray said the real argument for metering over fixed water charges lies in the control of leakage. He insists there is plenty of evidence to suggest that a high proportion of unaccounted for water is on the private customer’s side of the stop tap. Water meters are of far greater benefit and of greater cost saving value than simply changing customer water usage behaviour, he said.

Mr Gormley told the conference that it was unacceptable that the level of unaccounted for water in some water services authorities exceeds 50 per cent of the amount produced. “It does not make sense from an economic or environmental perspective to invest in expanding water treatment capacity if there is a significant loss of treated water in ageing or damaged networks. I am determined to address this matter.”

Mr Gormley said in previous years, water conservation had now been fully integrated into the State’s main investment programme in infrastructure.

“This ensures that the efficacy of network rehabilitation in meeting water supply capacity demand is more fully integrated into the planning of water supply schemes. The Programme provides for the commencement of contracts involving network rehabilitation with a value of some €320 million over the next three years on works,” he said.

“This is more than double the expenditure on water conservation works over the past seven years and I expect this investment to improve considerably our ability to reduce rates of unaccounted for water which are, in general, exceptionally high.”

Principal Officer at the Department of the Environment Ivan Grimes told the conference the one positive aspect that could be drawn from water shortages in Dublin last winter was the raised awareness amongst members of the public of the importance of supplies.

IrishTimes