Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate that. I was unaware of the Venice of Ireland. Every day is a school day.

My party position has already been laid out fairly clearly. People will probably say I should just sit down and say nothing, making everyone a lot happier, but unfortunately I have an inability to do so.

Deputy Ó Broin, who I suppose has made an assertion of sorts, referred to the logic for the licensing and registration thresholds and the point made that the EPA would not be fit for purpose, would come under far too much pressure and would be unable to do the job that is necessary if it were to do exactly what is done in the North. That point does not make a lot of sense. The fact is that we support the general notion of what needs to be done and all accept that we need to know by how much we are reducing the water table. That goes without saying. We are in a very changed world because of climate change and know about the huge impact on biodiversity. A considerable number of those who might have believed there was no need to worry about climate change have changed their minds based on the weather forecasts over recent years.

We have come under severe pressure owing to water supply. We have seen very low levels in lakes, rivers and reservoirs. My town, Dundalk, has had issues. Like everywhere else, it is dealing with an increased level of manganese. There is considerable research on why there is such an increase. I am told it sometimes exists at the bottom of water sources and features when the water is churned up. This happens easier when dealing with lower water levels. I will return to this.

The legislation proposes a two-tier regime. We all accept that but just cannot accept the registration threshold of 25 cu. m and the licensing threshold of 2,000 cu. m. We need these to be 10 cu. m and 250 cu. m, respectively.

It is hardly a shock for Sinn Féin to be proposing something on an all-Ireland basis but the fact that there has been good practice on this island and in other places gives me no reason to believe we could not follow what is happening elsewhere. If there is a problem with the EPA regarding resources, we are leaving ourselves wide open to a considerable number of issues if we do not address it. We need to make sure it is absolutely fit for purpose.

The Minister of State welcomed the work done by the committee and the report, but, as Deputy Ó Broin stated, many of its proposals have not been implemented. It makes absolute sense to do so. Ultimately, we all know the EPA needs to be resourced if it is to be responsible for managing the system. It does not make any sense for us to have rules if we do not have enforcement capacity. Therefore, the latter needs to happen.

We are back to having the conversation we always have at Christmas about rushing legislation. Only 45 minutes has been allowed to deal with a large number of issues of incredible importance in ensuring we have a fit-for-purpose water abstraction system and can deliver healthy water sustainably and with the steady supply that is necessary. We have all spoken about the changed water supply circumstances owing of climate change. What I propose is necessary.

I will return to the local issue. The people of Dundalk have been dealing with absolutely brown water for the past several years. Nobody believes what they hear from Irish Water on flushing. I have met representatives of Irish Water in the past while on the manganese issue. Manganese reacts with chlorine and can lead to brown water, which is not particularly appetising. Irish Water is attempting to put a process in place in Cavanhill that will remove the manganese from the water. It has not had much success and reckons that by the end of quarter 1 of next year, in or around March, it will know the solution. However, it could take upwards of two years to deliver a solution that would ensure the water of Dundalk looks like it should, along with being reasonably healthy.

That needs to be done.

To return to the Bill, sufficient time must be provided to allow due diligence to be done. We must put something in play that is fit for purpose because that is not we have at the minute. It is not good enough.

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