Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Far be it for me to offer Senator Landy anything but comfort, given the problems we have to deal with. There have been many questions and if I do not answer some, I will be happy to deal with them if Senators give me notice. The next Bill will address all the issues raised by Senator Landy, including the legal and important technical points which must be resolved.

What the Bill is doing is setting up the body called Irish Water, Uisce Éireann and the amendment gives it powers to do certain works and not to do other works. That is just as an interim measure. In order words, the power to instruct or not to instruct, will be in place only temporarily. When the full Bill is enacted there will be no need for ministerial intervention. We are establishing Irish Water and giving certain powers to the regulator in advance of full powers being given. The second piece of legislation will give powers to the regulator but we are allowing it to commence its work. Issues in regard to how Irish Water will operate will be dealt with in the next Bill before the end of the year.

Metering will complement conservation. Senator Barrett asked about the advantage of metering. It is a fact that a person living on his or her own in a flat uses very little water compared with a household of three or four. One could argue that one person in an apartment or whatever would use less water than anybody else but that will not always be the case. The first advantage of metering is that when the meter is being installed, any unaccounted for water on the customer side will be detected. I was speaking to people in County Mayo two weeks ago who told me that by metering a group water scheme they reduced unaccounted for water by 60%. In order words, it detected a 60% leakage on the customer side, not water on the main road or outside the property of the people in the scheme. As I understand it, a scheme in Cavan-Monaghan which had upwards of 80% unaccounted for water has now been resolved. It has saved that amount of water by metering. The best supporters of metering are the group water schemes all over the country, some of which I am meeting this evening. Metering actually works. A cost benefit analysis has been done and in individual cases it makes much sense. I accept that the extensive district metering will reduce leakage to a particular geographic location but it will not identify the street or road. From this point on, where there is significant leakage, metering will help find it. The level of the free allowance has not yet been decided. That is a matter for the Government to decide and will be announced in due course by the Minister, Deputy Phil Hogan.

A question was asked about the number of contractors involved. As the country has been split into eight areas, there could be up to eight regional contractors. After that, depending on the size of the area, one can tender for local contractors. If a regional contractor wants to install 20,000 meters in a particular town or area, it can choose from the list, which will be transparent, and will be published. In respect of everyone named on the list there will be transparency as to who they are and they must be eligible. If a person is not eligible, the contractor has a right to query that as it is entitled to have the information. A small contractor who has a JCB would not have the turnover as an SME. Obviously, local contractors could then be involved with the local people who are appointed to do the work. That is the important point. The legal liability that attaches to the regional contractor will attach to the local contractor and people it may bring in locally to do the work. Standards will have to be set in order that cowboys do not get involved. There will have to be total accountability back up the line as well as down the line.

Quality standards will be regulated. The quality of water will be set by the EPA and the HSE. It is important that the quality of water is improved. While the vast majority of water in the public mains is fantastic there are problems with group water schemes that have to be dealt with. The EPA will be the regulator. We want to be in a position to attract into areas, water intensive industries, such as pharmaceuticals, agriculture, ICT and so on. If we improve the quality and supply of water, Ireland could be a European centre for water intensive industries, whereas some parts of the UK have a water shortage.

The relationship between local authorities and Irish Water is critical. I acknowledge the fantastic work of local authorities, staff, engineers, plumbers and so on who have the capacity, ability and commitment to improve the infrastructure. To ensure that continues there will be service level agreements between local authorities and Irish Water in order that those working for local authorities will continue to provide that service up to at least 2017. If any person has an offer of employment in Irish Water, that is fine. There will be some voluntary transfers of people in that capacity. I do not know if I have answered all the questions but if I have omitted any please come back to me.