John Cummins (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach for selecting this Commencement matter. As Members know I tabled it on a number of occasions and I have written to both the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan, on this matter. I welcome the opportunity get some clarity on the matter because the discrepancies around the septic tank grants have existed now for too long.

On 27 June this year, the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, issued its latest report on domestic wastewater treatment systems. There are nearly half a million systems, mainly septic tanks, in Ireland and the report stated that fixing 40 septic tanks was taking too long. It went on to say that half of septic tanks inspected failed and 20% were a risk to human health and the environment. It also criticised the discrepancies between local authorities in terms of the numbers of inspections carried out. Where septic tanks fail inspections, local authorities issue advisory notices to householders, setting out what is required in order to fix the problem. The report by the EPA found there were 550 cases where issues that were notified to householders more than two years previously had still not been addressed. That brings us to the core element of today's matter.The grant levels are too low to have the impact they were set up to achieve, and significant numbers of householders are being excluded from the current grant supports through no fault of their own. The current grants that are available, as the Minister of State will be aware, cover 85% of the costs of remediation works up to a maximum of €5,000, which is wholly inadequate given inflationary impacts and the increased costs associated with repairing or replacing septic tanks or both. This needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency.

The other substantive issue relates to the exclusion of properties from grant supports because the property owner did not register their septic tank, as required, by 1 February 2013. While I can to an extent understand the logic of not rewarding those who fail to comply with registration regulations, there now have been many instances, some of which have been brought to my attention of my county, Waterford, in which the new owners of properties cannot avail of the grant supports available because the previous owner failed to register the septic tank, and that is fundamentally unfair. If someone buys a property with a septic tank that was not registered, he or she will have no way of rectifying the fact the previous owner did not register it by 1 February 2013 and, as a result, such people will be locked out and excluded from getting the grant support they need. This is yet another reason remediation is being put on the long finger by many. It is expensive to carry out these works and while the grant supports are there for this purpose, many are being excluded from them. I see it as a water quality as well as a fairness issue.

I understand a review has been carried out into the domestic wastewater treatment grants, which I had called for last year from the Minister of State's predecessor, Deputy Peter Burke. We need to know when the review will be published, what changes are expected as a result of it and a timeline for their implementation. In that context, the level of grant supports, and the exclusion of certain householders who had not carried out the registration by 1 February 2013, must be addressed in whatever that review recommends.

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Cummins for raising this important matter and giving me the opportunity to address it. As he will be aware, the Department provides funding for water services in areas of rural Ireland where no Uisce Éireann water services are available. The Department's rural water programme uses Exchequer funding to deliver improvements to water services throughout the rural water network.

As part of the funding being provided, grants are available to households with domestic water treatment systems, commonly known as septic tanks. The grant is administered on behalf of the Department by local authorities. The grant scheme was introduced by the Department in 2013 and is aimed at providing financial support to assist householders to carry out works to rectify or upgrade defective septic tanks. In 2020, the Department amended and improved the terms and conditions of the grant available to allow households to recoup up to €5,000 and removed the requirement for a means test for eligibility purposes.

The Water Services Act 2007, as amended, requires all owners of premises served by a domestic water treatment system to register their system with the local authority by the prescribed date of 1 February 2013, as the Senator noted. To be eligible for the grant, the owner must have registered their septic tank with the local authority by the prescribed date, and I am pleased to say approximately 98% of all systems are now registered with local authorities. Having a strict cut-off date to register has played a key role in this success.

The Department is carrying out a full review of all matters relating to the grant scheme and the review is at an advanced stage. I note the Senator's call for matters to be dealt with as quickly as possible. Extensive consultation with relevant stakeholders, including a recent focused workshop with local authority staff administering the grant, has been completed. A key point raised by stakeholders relates to the requirement to register septic tanks with local authorities by the prescribed date. The Department is actively considering all aspects of the current grant scheme, including the prescribed date requirement, as a matter of priority.

The Senator focused on the level of the grant and the exclusion, and both of those matters are being considered. I hope the Department will come to a speedy conclusion on the review with all the relevant stakeholders and especially the local authorities.

John Cummins (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. My concern is with the timeline for the review, which has been going on for quite some time. It was my understanding that the review was completed.

In his response, the Minister of State cited that 98% of all systems are now registered with local authorities, but the question is what percentage were registered before 1 February 2013. I would argue that it was considerably lower than the 98%. What that is actually doing is excluding a significant cohort that were not registered by that date, so it must be included in the recommendations of the review that these are taken into consideration and are able to avail of a higher grant in this space along with all other registered septic tanks. It is an issue of equity and fairness. Many are being excluded through no fault of their own, in particular those who purchased properties between 1 February 2013 and 31 July 2023. I ask the Minister of State to expedite this as quickly as possible, to revise the grant that has been announced upwards, and to include householders that were not registered before 1 February 2013.

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I again thank Senator Cummins for raising this important matter. The Department is very conscious of all the issues he raises, including the level of the grant and the exclusion of certain categories on the basis of data registration.

We want to have a comprehensive review. I accept that timing is of the essence. The EPA report more particularly puts it further in context. I assure Senator Cummins that the Department is actively examining ways to improve the availability of grant assistance to households to fix faulty domestic wastewater treatment systems. Senator Cummins makes the points very well. I will take them back to the officials so that we can ensure that everything is covered in the review and that we get the review completed as quickly as possible.