Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Of course, this overflow is not normal but unfortunately the discharges have been necessary because if the discharges had not occurred into the sea they would have occurred into the streets and into people's businesses and homes. The health repercussions of that would have been far more significant than what we have seen.

There are other complex pollution issues happening in Dublin Bay currently. There are sources of algae that are not as a result of these discharges and that have led to distressing sights and smells for people. These have coincided with the timing of some of the discharges but they have been an ongoing problem in Dublin Bay for several years, before the recent events of this summer.

We have committed €400 million to this plant upgrade, which is incredibly important. Planning permission was achieved earlier this year, which means that they can now commence on site. I have visited the plant and it will be a very significant upgrade. It will not be completed until the end of 2022. I have had direct contact with Irish Water to tell it that early warning systems are to be put in place. When, for example, a yellow weather alert for rain is forecast a warning will go out to bathers that until we have had sufficient time to test the quality of the water not bathe in it. These are the types of things we can proactively do to protect citizens.

As I said in my initial reply, there will be a meeting in the coming weeks between the different stakeholders, such as the EPA, Irish Water, the local authorities and the HSE, to see what we can do in the interim before the actual plant works are completed. The other important project, on which the local authorities are leading, relates to sewerage pipes that are not connected properly to the sewerage system.

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