Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I should not have to come to the House today to raise this issue. It has been going on for 15 years. Irish Water, and Mayo County Council before it, have not deal with this issue. There are 115 houses affected. It is a terrible thing when people pay their taxes, water charges, local property tax and everything they are asked to pay, yet they have to come home every evening to find an awful odour in their homes. Irish Water staff came out two weeks ago, looked at it and did some work, but a week later it was back again and these families have to suffer. It is not right in this day and age. There is a health and safety issue here. Reports have been sent in to Irish Water. Today, I am asking the Minister of State to set up a meeting with the CEO of Irish Water, me and officials from his Department to find out once and for all why honest and decent taxpayers have to put up with this. The houses I am referring to are in the town of Claremorris. A new sewerage system was put in many years ago and there is no doubt that there is a fault somewhere along the line. Something has gone wrong and somebody did not do their job along the way. The people who are suffering are the people of Claremorris and the owners of the 115 houses affected. It is not right. There are families with children who have been sick. When this happens in the evening time, particularly when there is fine weather though we do not have too much of that, these people cannot open their windows. The smell is in their houses. They are embarrassed to bring in friends and neighbours. It is a terrible thing. When they are eating their dinner in the evening, there is a terrible odour. It has been happening for the past 15 years. They have been pleading with the county council and with Irish Water and nothing has been done. Irish Water seems to be out of control at the moment. It does not seem to be doing what it is asked to do. It is not answerable to public representatives. At a recent meeting of Mayo County Council I heard that it has been trying to get representatives of Irish Water in for the past number of months to discuss other issues and they have not come in. They are not Gods. Taxpayers are paying their wages. The ordinary people out there are paying their taxes. The least these public servants can do is to come in and tell us what the problem is and how they are going to fix it. It has been going on for too long. It needs to be dealt with and I want it dealt with now. I ask the Minister of State to set up a meeting with Irish Water. I have written to the management and I do not even think they replied. It is not good enough. I want this issue resolved. We need to find out what the problem is and how to get it fixed. I want it done immediately.

Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party)
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In the first instance, the county council is responsible for investigating and dealing with complaints of poor air quality, including odours. I note the serious issues raised by the Deputy relating to Knock Road, Claremorris. All potential sources of the odour would need to be investigated to establish the cause and origins of the issues. The county council may be able to deal with the issue from within its own book of powers and functions. If the issue involves an Environmental Protection Agency-regulated site, the local authority will pass the complaint to the agency for a response. The EPA, as environmental regulator, is responsible for setting quality standards and enforcing compliance with EPA Licences. I understand from inquiries that have been made with Uisce Éireann that the company and the local authority water services area staff are investigating sewers as one potential source but have not identified any specific source of the odour issue. Pumping stations in the area are operating normally and there is no evidence of blockages in the sewer system. Uisce Éireann source control has advised that there are no business or commercial discharges on this section of network. Further investigations are to be undertaken for any potential unlicensed discharges in this area.

This area of the sewer network is included in the odour control programme and Uisce Éireann is currently gathering and processing data for the next stage of the assessment. Options for remedial action will be developed once this assessment has been completed. If the matter is indeed related to the public sewers, that is the sole responsibility of Uisce Éireann, as the Deputy will appreciate. The company is responsible for the maintenance and cleaning of the public sewer network. Uisce Éireann has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local levels. Private sewers are a matter for the individual owners to address. Additional information and advice on the public collection and treatment of wastewater is available on Uisce Éireann’s website.

To respond to the Deputy specifically, he has requested that I organise a meeting with the CEO of Uisce Éireann and officials from my Department. That meeting should be with Uisce Éireann officials locally and with area staff from Mayo County Council. I know they have met previously but Uisce Éireann is working to resolve and identify the source of the problem. If the source of the problem is not the sewer network, area engineers need to find from where it is coming from. Certainly, we can pass the Deputy's note on to Uisce Éireann. The responsibility lies with Uisce Éireann and, hopefully, the matter will be resolved in a timely manner.

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I will not be unkind to the Minister of State because I know he is trying to be helpful. The people have been completely frustrated with Mayo County Council for the past 15 years. They are frustrated with Irish Water. Staff were out two weeks ago and they could not find the source of the problem. They had machinery in there. We can land a man on the moon now and we can fly vehicles all over the world. Surely to God, Irish Water and Mayo County Council can find where this problem is between them. It is terrible that 115 houses are affected. The problem has not been created by the people themselves. The houses do not have sceptic tanks. They are connected to a sewerage system that was put into Claremorris a number of years ago. There is a problem, and it is a serious one. I know the Minister of State will do his best. I will raise the matter again. I ask him to contact both Irish Water and the council. I have been on to Mayo County Council and have been told it is a problem for Irish Water. This is the new line. It is a bit like the Government and the HSE. The Minister of State says he has no responsibility and the council says it is a problem for Irish Water. I do not care who has responsibility. These people are paying their taxes, including the local property tax. Every one of them is out there working hard, picking up their children and coming home. One of them is a manager of a big company in Mayo. He has done a lot of work and paid a lot of money to look into it. He has sent in graphs and has supplied details of the times when the smell appears, yet nothing has been done. I ask the Minister of State to get back to Irish Water. I certainly will contact Mayo County Council again, but as I have said, it is like going to the moon to bring down a sewer from the moon. That is the truth.

Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party)
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I reiterate that it is a matter for Uisce Éireann to investigate issues that pertain to its own sewer network. Certainly, we will pass on the message to Uisce Éireann with a view to resolving the issue, if it pertains to its network. My own experience with Uisce Éireann has been very good. I acknowledge that from time to time Deputies complain about the lack of accountability and its lack of engagement but it is quite good. It responds at a local level. The Deputy will find good levels of response with the area engineers. A concerted effort is being made to resolve this issue for the people of Claremorris. It is something that they have been putting up with for far too long and it needs to be addressed. There is no doubt that every effort is being made. Certainly, I will pass on the Deputy's concerns to Uisce Éireann.