John Cummins (Waterford, Fine Gael)

I thank those who have contributed to this discussion on water quality and the performance of Uisce Éireann. I assure the Senators that their comments will be fed back to Uisce Éireann. Some of the concerns and issues they have raised, collectively and individually, are ones that we share. A number of Senators raised matters related to developer provided infrastructure and the importance of that in facilitating the development of smaller settlement areas across the country that either do not have capacity or do not have capacity in existing plants. That is why we brought that measure forward. It can involve a combination of nature-based solutions and mechanical solutions.The Senators are all correct. It will be done to a set standard and criteria. It is expected that it will be in place by the end of February next year, that everyone will know the rules of engagement and that, on completion of those, they will be taken in charge and managed by Uisce Éireann because of course we must learn from the mistakes of the past. A lot of infrastructure was put in at a particular time in this country and while a lot of it was not necessarily substandard, it was not managed and maintained, which was a significant flaw in the system. We must ensure that is not the case going forward when we facilitate this.

Uisce Éireann will facilitate self-lay for developers, which I know was raised as part of the discrepancy in pricing.

On unacceptable timeframes, I covered that in my opening remarks when I said that a timeline is not an option but, rather, essential. Both the Minister, Deputy Browne, and I have been very clear with Uisce Éireann that, in terms of pre-connection and connection agreements, its performance needs to improve in this space. The programme for Government contains a reference to statutory decision-making timelines and they will be implemented, as required. I would prefer, as per our discussions and notwithstanding the fact that there are significantly more connections year in and year out, Uisce Éireann needs to ensure that issues are addressed in a timely manner and communications are improved.

More generally, I want to reflect on the progress made since Uisce Éireann was established ten years ago. It is important to put on the record of the House that in a decade thousands of kilometres of new or rehabilitated water mains have been installed, the national leakage rate has been reduced and the overall quality of drinking water remains very high. Further, as noted earlier, Uisce Éireann has seen considerable improvements in water quality, including the decline in the impact of urban wastewater. There is more work to do. The sustained and increasing funding and support that is provided by Government will enable Uisce Éireann to make continued progress in the years to come as well as progress overall on protecting rivers, lakes and coastal waters.

Reference was made to money. The Government is investing record sums of money in Uisce Éireann and we need to see delivery when taxpayers' money is provided to it. Of particular note is the important role that water infrastructure will play in meeting our ambitious housing targets, as highlighted by a number of Senators here today. It is important to remember the scale of the work. Every day Uisce Éireann treats approximately 1.7 billion litres of water and 1.26 billion litres of wastewater. Uisce Éireann also manages the source of our water, with more than 1,100 abstractions and more than 1,500 reservoirs connected to tens of thousands of kilometres of pipes. Every single day millions of households and businesses are supplied with good quality water and wastewater services, with thousands of treatment plants running around the clock. I do take the points raised by Senator Kyne about the generation and back-up capacity, which obviously must be in place to ensure that we do not experience outages at times of extreme weather events.

Under the water services and water quality sector investment plan for the NDP, Uisce Éireann has a number of key capital programmes to deliver improvements across all of these responsibilities. They include: leakage reduction; accelerating housing delivery; enabling new connections; and of course building new infrastructure, including major new treatment plants.

It is important to note that we are dealing with a legacy issue of underinvestment in water services and infrastructure in Ireland. I do acknowledge that. The scale and level of remedial works necessary in order to ensure that we have a fit-for-purpose system for the 21st century will take time to resolve. The Government recognises these challenges and that is why we are investing €12.2 billion in water services under the current NDP.

In tandem with our investment in the national water infrastructure, which is managed by Uisce Éireann, the broader funding under the NDP will play a huge role in supporting rural communities. Investment has been set aside for rural water infrastructure, underpinning the provision of safe and secure water services to rural areas that do not have access to Uisce Éireann services.

Of course the main focus of this record-breaking funding is on expanding and strengthening water services nationally. A sum of €2.5 billion has been set aside for generational projects like the water supply project for the eastern and midlands region and the greater Dublin drainage project. It is regrettable that we have a further judicial review of the latter much-needed project. These projects, alongside our broader investment under the NDP, will secure our water supply and wastewater services for the growing population and future generations.

Beyond the two major projects, new water infrastructure is being progressed in every part of the country to support reaching the new housing targets and strengthen existing supplies. Among the significant Uisce Éireann projects to be progressed in 2026 are the Limerick wastewater treatment plant upgrade, the Waterford city wastewater treatment plant upgrade and the Ballymore Eustace to Saggart resilience project. That list is not exhaustive. In tandem with these major investment projects - water infrastructure by Uisce Éireann - the NDP funding will also help to protect our environment and water quality, which I referenced in my opening statement. What is needed is a pragmatic approach that will reflect the scale of the effort to address our water quality and the many pressures that we have impacting on it. The funding allocated under the NDP will improve infrastructure alongside targeted measures to improve water quality and will make sure that we continue to make progress towards achieving our goals.

My Department is also beginning the process of developing our fourth river basin management plan, for 2028 to 2033. As I said in my opening contribution, the significant efforts being made by all stakeholders, particularly the agriculture sector, to reduce nitrates and phosphorous levels, particularly in intensive agricultural areas, are having an impact. We obviously need to see that continuing.

In conclusion, I reiterate my thanks to all of the staff who work in Uisce Éireann, the local authority sector and all of the State agencies that play a role in ensuring we have good quality water and wastewater infrastructure in this country, and ensuring that we will continue to improve water quality in Ireland because that has a positive impact on social and economic dividends going forward.