Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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Question 230: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if a coordinated national approach will be taken to the provision of adequate water services to all towns in the country, including a stronger water conservation publicity campaign and strategy; if he will restrict the ability of planning authorities to zone land unless they have the capacity to provide a constant, reliable and adequate water service to all households in their domains; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24319/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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My Department coordinates and finances a major programme of investment in new and improved water services infrastructure. Details of projects approved for Departmental funding are set out in the Water Services Investment Programme 2005-2007 which is available in the Oireachtas Library. The water supply schemes included in the Programme are derived mainly from regular assessments of needs undertaken by local authorities, at my Department's request, as an input to the overall strategy for meeting water supply production, treatment and distribution requirements.

Local authorities have recently been requested to carry out fresh assessments of needs and to submit these to my Department by end July 2006. Any new priorities identified by these latest assessments will inform scheme selection under future phases of the Water Services Investment Programme.

The Water Services Investment Programme 2005-2007 also incorporates a national water conservation sub-programme under which €281 million is available to local authorities specifically to fund:

(a) management systems to monitor water use and loss in supply networks;

(b) targeted leakage control measures; and

(c) rehabilitation and replacement of obsolete supply networks. In November 2005, I increased the rate of Exchequer grant available for network rehabilitation and replacement from 75% to 90% to secure greater progress on the sub-programme.

My Department's draft guidelines for Planning Authorities on Development Plans, which were issued for public consultation in April 2006, are explicit in enjoining regard for the existing and future availability of, or the capacity to provide, infrastructure. The draft guidelines emphasise that while services are not available, zoning for development should only be contemplated where there is a reasonable expectation of the services being provided in the development plan period. Land should not be zoned if there is no reliable prospect of providing key physical infrastructure, within the plan development period or a reasonable time period thereafter, such as improved roads, footpaths, drainage and lighting to serve likely future development.