Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

First, I welcome the guests. They have been very busy for the last hour or so. The EPA is a necessary evil because we need it to make sure we have good quality water in the country and that is very important. As the old saying goes, it is only when the well runs dry that people start looking. When we have alerts for water quality and everything else, then people are asking questions such as why this is happening. At the beginning of the report, the EPA said there were improvements overall but also that the report was negative. Will the witnesses explain that? There were improvements in certain areas, but in the overall report, it was said there was a decline in water quality. Will they explain that?