Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for taking this matter. It is unfortunate that I have to raise it in the House but it is primarily because of the lack of information that has been provided to residents in Ferns, County Wexford, by Irish Water. Uisce Éireann issued a boil water notice in Ferns on 28 June due to the detection of the presence of cryptosporidium in the local water supply. It is reckoned that 1,723 people are impacted by this and the residents of Ferns are now on their 14th day of a boil water notice. Residents are being forced to buy water for washing, for cleaning, for laundry and for drinking purposes. No tankers have been provided into the community. At a meeting of Wexford County Council this week, one of the directors of services for the council, who has been trying to get answers, told members of the council that this could take up to another three weeks to resolve.

People are living in an area potentially without a water supply for more than a month now. The real concern residents have is that there does not seem to be an end in sight. There has been a lack of communication on the part of Uisce Éireann with residents in the area. They have not been told exactly what is going on. We understand there may be testing of the waters. That has to happen. The health and safety of people living in the area has to be the first concern. However, Uisce Éireann could at least give an estimate of how long this will last and what is going on at the moment in terms of testing, to keep people informed. Communication is a basic requirement. Given this has been going on for so long, tankers should be brought in. We have seen this in other instances where there have been problems with water supplies. We had a problem with the water supply in my town, Gorey, a number of years ago, and tankers were brought in.

I am sorry to have to bring this matter before the House but it is due to the lack of information provided to people. The Minister of State can understand the importance of good, clean water. This issue is just not acceptable. It has been going on for 14 days, so far, and we reckon it could be another three weeks before the matter is resolved.