Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The records of the loads that are taken out and brought to another treatment plant. There is a flow meter. I will put it simply for anybody who understands sewerage. There is a flow meter in and a flow meter out. When you treat your sewage, you have a flow meter going out that indicates how many cubic metres have been let out and a flow meter going in that indicates how many cubic metres have come in. Some of the sewage will be taken out to be treated somewhere else if the plant in question is not fit to treat it. Do the witnesses understand where I am coming from? Are the volumes of what comes in and goes out, and what is taken away, looked at by the EPA? I know what I am talking about in this regard. I am putting to the witnesses that in wet weather, more cubic metres should be going through because of the volumes. If you can only cater for 100 cu. m per hour, you cannot cater for 150 cu. m per hour so you have to take some away. Is anybody in the EPA following the volume in cubic metres that come in and go out on all the flow meters? Is there a data record of that? Is it in the possession of the EPA? Is there someone analysing it? That is how we will know if sewage is being fully treated or going down a river or whatever else, or is being taken away. That is the ABC. It is like doing maths. Does the EPA have somebody looking after those 500 plants and analysing every aspect? What have those figures shown? I have seen things going on and other people have reported other things going on. I am not shocked that phosphorous levels in Ireland are high. I would be wary that farmers are taking the brunt of the blame for phosphorous when there may be a bigger problem in other areas. That is what I am putting to the witnesses.