Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Regional Group for bringing forward this most important motion, which the Social Democrats fully support.

The final draft of the Cork county development plan is open for consultation at the moment. Its section on water services is a stark warning of the investment needed in our drinking water and waste water treatment infrastructure. Out of 42 towns and villages, 22 are listed as having no capacity to process waste water, three have some capacity and six may have capacity, depending on the Irish Water investment plan.

It is not just an issue for small villages with limited treatment plants. Major towns are classified as having a strategic infrastructure deficit. Kinsale, with a population of more than 5,000 and plans for 2,000 more people, has no capacity. There have been problems with discharges from the Dunmanway waste water treatment plant and overflows from the pumping station going back years. In addition, future developments in Bandon, Bantry and Skibbereen are dependent on works on water treatment facilities and Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, licences.

Drinking water is also a significant issue. Clonakilty is facing considerable challenges in meeting its current water supply needs, without taking into consideration the estimated 800 new homes it needs to meet population growth. The town's population was impacted by a drought in 2018, a weather event that will only increase in occurrence with climate change. Castletownbere is also affected. The main source of water, Glenbeg Lough, is in a special area of conservation, limiting the supply, and the water treatment works have leakages and are in poor condition. The county development plan highlights this as a significant barrier to new developments in the town.

This is a snapshot of one constituency, but as my fellow rural Deputies have outlined, it is a major challenge which impacts on many communities and restricts planned developments. The motion forwarded by the Regional Group rightly calls for a strategic plan to make regional development a reality by investing in water and waste water infrastructure in our towns and villages.

I have repeatedly brought up the need for greater investment in our water services in this House. In particular, I have highlighted the disgraceful conditions in Belgooly and Shannonvale. Malodours from the waste water treatment plant in Belgooly are so bad that at times, people have to keep their windows closed and cannot let their children out to play. Many want to move, but the smell has lowered the value of their homes. In Shannonvale, there is a green space that used to be heart of the village. Now, it is unsafe and unusable because of a waste water plant that floods the area. This has been going on for so long that it is almost an intergenerational problem. The council and Irish Water have introduced stop-gap measures, but when temporary responses stretch over years and generations, it is time for action.

I have had extensive and very productive meetings with Irish Water, which has highlighted the need for more investment. It rightly has to prioritise the most pressing waste water treatment projects, but this means that the likes of Shannonvale are overlooked time and again. We need the type of strategic investment that this motion calls for to ensure that all communities receive the safe and effective services to which they are entitled. From an environmental and health perspective, the very least people should expect is the proper treatment of waste water and household sewage. However, years of underinvestment in water infrastructure have left communities and areas exposed to discharges and malodour.

The EPA's Water Quality in Ireland 2013-2018 report found that almost half of our rivers, lakes, and estuaries are ecologically unsatisfactory. Waste water discharge is listed as one of the main causes of this deterioration, after agriculture.

Proper investment in water infrastructure is essential to human and environmental health, and it is a fundamental factor in determining the development of our rural communities. We need sufficient safe drinking water. We need to be assured that our waste water is being treated properly. We need the Government to act now.

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