Joanna Tuffy (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 202: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the manner in which the €200 million savings announced in the supplementary Budget of 7 April 2009 that included water services infrastructure will impact on the need for water treatment facilities in various counties to be upgraded to guard against contamination of drinking water supplies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16904/09]

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The capital provision for water services infrastructure in 2009 is €500 million — a reduction of €60 million on the €560 million envisaged in the 2009 Estimates for Public Services and Summary Public Capital Programme published in October 2008. The provision represents an increase of 1% on last year's outturn and, given the very difficult economic circumstances against which the 2009 estimates were framed, reflects the Government's ongoing commitment to the sector.

Good progress will continue to be made under the Water Services Investment Programme in 2009. It is expected that 40 water and waste water schemes will be completed this year and that up to 50 new schemes will be able to start; a total of 160 schemes are expected to be in progress at the end of this year.

The Water Services Investment Programme is currently under review to ensure that spending is focused on priority schemes. Water Services Authorities will be asked to undertake updated assessments of needs in the middle of this year which will be used as a key input to the review of the Programme. Priority objectives for the new Programme will include the need to deliver infrastructure required to meet National and EU standards in relation to drinking water.

The recently published EPA Report The Provision and Quality of Drinking Water in Ireland — A Report for the Years 2007-2008, a copy of which is available in the Oireachtas Library and on the EPA's website www.epa.ie, identified 341 public water supply schemes requiring remedial action to address deficiencies in infrastructure or operational practice. These supplies are being addressed on an ongoing multi-agency basis, involving my Department, the EPA, Water Services Authorities and the HSE as appropriate. As well as investment in major upgrading under the Water Services Investment Programme, which will address the deficiencies in some of the supplies highlighted, a special €16 million fund was established in 2008 to meet the costs of relatively small scale improvements required in affected supplies. It is anticipated that €10 million of this Fund will be expended in 2009.