Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I met with Irish Water, along with my colleagues, Councillors Terry Crossan and Gerry McMonagle, about our concerns over the south Inishowen water supply from the Eddie Fullerton Dam and the development of Letterkenny, the major gateway town in the county. I left that meeting with a clear view that Irish Water is utterly under-resourced. There is clearly no plan in place to address how Irish Water meets its responsibilities to our communities across this State. In the case of south Inishowen, an inadequate pipe infrastructure that has burst repeatedly was put in place. This is the main trunk line from the Eddie Fullerton Dam to thousands of homes that are regularly impacted by water bursts. Those pipes were to be replaced a number of years ago. I was given a guarantee to that effect in a meeting with Irish Water but Irish Water is now saying that will not be done any time soon because there are even worse cases across the county. What a mess.

Letterkenny town is the major gateway and magnet for investment in the county. Irish Water is now stating that the situation there will have to be developer-led. That is a mess that has impacted Letterkenny in the past. The infrastructure needs to be put in place and building can then occur around it. There are concerns over both water and waste

water. Councillors in Letterkenny have a vision to extend the town southward. That is their vision. They want to develop lands for waste water and water but Irish Water cannot do it. There is a whole area, as one approaches the town from the direction of Buncrana and Derry, containing businesses and houses that are not connected to a state-of-the-art sewerage treatment plant because the investment is not there. I give the Minister of State those examples of the mess we are facing and the need for a plan and resourcing. That is why this motion is so important.

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