Naoise Ó Muirí (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will talk about two vital Irish Water projects for the Dublin region. The first is the Shannon to Dublin water supply project. In the greater Dublin region, just one source, namely, the River Liffey, supplies 85% of our water. The dependence on the River Liffey and the two big treatment plants in Ballymore Eustace and Leixlip means the greater Dublin region is exposed to risks such as prolonged drought, contamination or both.

Population growth, the demand for housing and the impact of climate change mean we will need 34% more water by 2044 than is available today. This combination of a growing water supply gap and lack of supply resilience is not sustainable. We need to fix this.

The water supply project from Shannon is vital for sustaining economic growth not just for Dublin but for many other counties between here and the River Shannon. Dublin, Meath, Kildare and Wicklow all need additional water. The importance of the scheme cannot be overstated. The chair of the board of Uisce Éireann said recently that the supply for Dublin is "very tight" over the next few years because of delay with the Shannon project. As long as I was a member of Dublin City Council, before I was elected to the Dáil, that project was talked about. We need to get on with it, get our statutory permission lined up, get the funding to Irish Water and get it done and dusted for this region. Otherwise, we will be in trouble.

The other project is the greater Dublin drainage project, which is also vital for treating wastewater sewage in the Dublin region. It is meant to be based in my area of Clonshaugh but it seems to have been tied up in objections, challenges and court issues. We seem to struggle with wastewater projects. I have spoken to my colleagues from the west of Ireland, including Galway, and other areas. They are all struggling with treatment capacity for wastewater in particular. As I understand it, the project is still under review in the planning process. We do not seem to by any further forward. There seems to have been an element of European challenge to it, which is fine as long as it is ruled on and dealt with. We cannot go back to the start again for greater Dublin drainage. It is vital that we support Uisce Éireann in whatever way we can to get those two projects delivered and done, to get water supplied to the Dublin region and to get wastewater treated.

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