Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Cathaoirleach for giving me the opportunity to raise this and many other important matters in the Seanad in the past few years. This issue relates to sewer pipes in very old estates. Some estates were constructed as recently as 40 years ago, but others are much older. I have come across examples in Ashbourne, Duleek and Drogheda. The issue concerns sewer pipes that become blocked from time to time due to inadequate infrastructure put in place at the time in the 1970s, 1960s or even the 1930s. If the pipes in one house are blocked, the pipes in the whole street can also become blocked. Until Irish Water was formed, the local authorities used to regularly clear sewer pipes on behalf of residents. Since responsibility for water and sewage services was removed from local authorities, in general, Irish Water refuses to clear sewer pipes.

There are cases in which people have to clear a blockage in their systems. However, the blockage is not on theirs but on someone else's property and nothing can be done about it. This is a very serious issue which tends to affect older residents who have been in their houses for a long time. It is not a problem that affects newer estates as much. This is a responsibility local authorities had taken on for many years, but it did follow through to Irish Water. It is essential that some direction be given to it, specifically in estates where this work was always done by the local authority. It is not possible for someone to deal with a problem caused down the street; it has to be dealt with centrally by the public authorities.

Ann Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Labour)
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I thank the Senator for raising this issue and note how it affects many householders. As the House will be aware, the Government, local authorities and Irish Water are continuing to deliver on an ambitious transformation programme in the water services sector. Since 1 January 2014, Irish Water has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local level. The Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 provided for local authorities to act as agents of Irish Water, with this relationship being expressed through service level agreements. Through these 12-year agreements, local authorities are utilising their experience and expertise in asset management and operations to provide services on behalf of Irish Water.This expertise is being combined with the considerable network and utility management experience available to Irish Water. The agreements are based on partnership, continuous improvement and the delivery of efficiencies.

Each service level agreement, SLA, in place with a local authority is supported by an annual service plan which reflects the required programme of transformation for that authority. It also outlines agreed objectives and standards of performance, set against a budget covering headcount, goods and services and investment in the forthcoming year. Annual service plans encompass a set of operational objectives, key performance indicators and a related budget, including payroll. These plans set out the context for the delivery of water services for each local authority for a given year.

The Water Services Act 2007 sets down the obligations and responsibilities of water services authorities and property owners in respect of water infrastructure. Sections 43 and 54 provide that a property owner is responsible for the maintenance and replacement of any water or wastewater pipes, connections or distribution systems connected within the boundary of his or her property. This was the case also prior to the transfer of responsibility for public water services from the local authorities to Irish Water.

However, local authorities, at their own discretion, may have undertaken clearance works in respect of common wastewater infrastructure on private property in the past. These works were not a requirement of the law pertaining at the time and not every local authority would have provided such services.

The Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 transferred responsibility for the maintenance and repair of pipes and combined drains under publicly owned roadways and pathways to Irish Water while responsibility for storm water sewers remained with local authorities. The position, as set out in legislation, provides clarity on the responsibility for the maintenance of common sewerage pipes.

Notwithstanding the legal position, I recognise the importance of the local authorities and Irish Water working together to agree operational guidelines on this and other boundary type matters, so as to provide clarity to householders as to the services which they can expect to receive from Irish Water, working in partnership with the local authorities under the SLA arrangements. Against this background, further legislation in this area is not envisaged.

Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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Obviously, Fianna Fáil’s manifesto states it wants to abolish Irish Water, a position common to many parties. Hopefully, the situation will resolve itself after the general election. The Minister of State has come a bit of the way from what Ministers have said before. It seems the Minister of State is not saying “No” to this but is not saying “Yes” either. She is merely saying that local authorities and Irish Water should work together. Is this not what the Minister of State and her boss, the Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly, should say to Irish Water, namely, sort this out with the local authorities where it was done before? Clearly, there are problematic estates dotted around the country, usually at least 40 years old and some are ex-local authority and not all privately built. They need this occasional service which was always provided to continue. These people simply cannot understand, now that they are paying for water and sewage charges, why this is not provided.

Will the Minister of State get the local authorities and the Irish Water - the staff of which will be transferred back to local authorities after the election - to knock heads together to get this done? It is mainly elderly people in general who are affected by this.

Ann Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Labour)
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I have sympathy for the issue the Senator has raised. The recent floods have thrown up anomalies in these areas and about who has responsibility for this and that. When I was on Kilkenny County Council - it is the same in Carlow - the local authority did not have responsibility for water pipes on private property. It was the owners who had responsibility in that respect.

The Senator might speak to the director of services at his local authority to examine how this could work in the future. If the Senator’s party gets into government after the next general election and abolishes Irish Water, he could do all of these things in the future.