Pat Casey (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Ireland has a high level of water availability and relatively low consumption levels. This means that fully funding infrastructure investment and promoting water conservation are key components in addressing the long-term issues that are features of our water crisis. I suppose addressing the leakages is one of the key parts of that. When the Joint Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government discussed this matter recently, it was worrying to hear that 207 megalitres of water is wasted on a daily basis. The Government's investment over a 30-year period is supposed to reduce the daily level of wastage to 140 megalitres. There needs to be a greater emphasis on addressing water leakages. There is a high level of water availability in Ireland. Research shows that Ireland has one of the highest rates of water availability in the world. We have renewable water resources of approximately 13,000 megalitres per capitaper annum. The equivalent figure for France is 3,371 megalitres and for Israel is just 225 megalitres. This clearly indicates that Ireland needs to investment in infrastructure and in repairing water leakages. Like everyone else, the councillors in my local area have seen many water leakages over the years. We have had to wait ten or 15 years for burst pipes to be replaced. When this eventually happens, we see the significant savings that immediately accrue. We need to invest more in critical infrastructure and in repairing leakages. I acknowledge how our citizens have reacted to the recent water shortages. I thank them for acting responsibly to save water as often as they can. It is only now that Irish Water is beginning to promote the importance of water conservation on a domestic basis. In line with the need to implement ways of saving water, soft supports are needed to educate people on an ongoing basis about the best ways to save water at home, in commercial businesses and in agriculture.

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