Camillus Glynn (Fianna Fail)

Deputy Phil Hogan called for the setting up of a single water authority to take responsibility for water supply and investment from local authorities at a time when the Minister had recently introduced a Green Paper and the publication of a White Paper was imminent. This is a great opportunity for everybody to engage in the reform of local government, a matter on which I have spoken at length to my party. I hope everybody will take up the cudgel, grasp the nettle and do what has to be done to enhance the powers of local government. On the issue of water supply and services, the leader of Fine Gael did not answer the question when asked about water charges. He avoided it.

Something has to be done about water wastage, as the position is unacceptable. The Government has provided for significant investment in the water programme. Some practices during the cold spell were totally unacceptable, an issue referred to by Senator Coffey who mentioned that people had left taps running. Water is a food source.

I come from the country and remember a time many moons ago when I was a young lad when we were building an extension to our house. The contractor gave the price as a certain amount but there was a condition, namely, that we had to supply the water. As the youngest of a large family, I and my late brother had to carry water some 200 m up a hill and across a road. As a consequence, I appreciate the value of a water supply, especially on tap.

Non-national roads have taken a severe hammering owing to the weather conditions, but the people to whom my heart goes out are those whose homes were flooded. They woke up one morning and not only had their homes been flooded, the water had frozen. I feel very sorry for them.

We need a fresh approach to the conservation of water. In the past decade we have invested in water services to meet the historical deficit, improve water quality by providing for adequate treatment capacity to meet more rigorous standards for drinking water and wastewater and deal with population and economic growth which has led to an increase in demand for water services and environmental impacts on other water resources. Some €4.6 billion has been invested by the Exchequer since 2000 and it has had noticeable results. Some 480 water and wastewater schemes have been completed, which have resulted in an increase in the level of drinking water treatment and storage capacity to meet the needs of a population of 855,000, that is, 214 million and 1,324 million litres a day, respectively. The figure in respect of the European Union urban wastewater treatment directive on secondary wastewater treatment facilties now stands at some 92% compared to 25% at the start of 2000. Additional treatment capacity to meet the needs of a population of 3.6 million has been provided. However, we still have a journey to go, which is why the Government is committed in these difficult times to sustaining record investment in water services. Some €508 million has been provided for water services infrastructure in 2010. The average spend on water services in 2009 and 2010 will be up by 3% on the 2008 outturn. The Government will launch a new water services programme for the period 2010 to 2012 early this year, the central themes of which will be water quality and conservation. There is no question but that the water network has to be upgraded. We have taken important steps in this direction. I ask the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Finneran, whom I welcome to the House, to ensure the investment programme which has been ongoing for some years and is resulting in great improvements is continued.

Ní hé lá na gaoithe lá na scoilbe. There is no point worrying about flooding during the winter when the issue is pertinent in most areas. There has to be a co-ordinated approach to the flooding which has taken place in many towns. With Senator Coffey and members of the Joint Committee on the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, I will be travelling to Munster to visit the towns which were flooded in County Cork and it is hoped we will meet Senator McCarthy there. Similarly, we hope to visit other flooded areas. Something must be done about protection against flooding and water wastage, the latter of which arises from defaults in the network.