Written answers
Wednesday, 19 March 2025
Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government
Water Services
Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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924. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the work his Department has undertaken since 2017 on each of the eight recommendations from chapter 5 of the Joint Committee on the Future Funding of Domestic Water Services Report of April 2017 dealing with issues related to water conservation, in tabular form. [12003/25]
James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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My Department has done considerable work on all the recommendations of the Joint Committee on the Future Funding of Domestic Water Services Report of April 2017. In relation to Chapter 5 dealing with issues related to water conservation, the work undertaken is set out in the table below.
| JOC Chapter 5 Recommendations | Update |
|---|---|
| 5.1 The Committee recommends that conservation of water resources should be embedded as a principle of water policy in Ireland. | The Water Services Policy Statement 2024-2030 sets out as one of its primary objectives that water services will be efficient, resilient and sustainable in the long term; Under this objective, priorities are to ensure that public water services are sustainable, that climate targets are met for the sector, and that water conservation forms a cornerstone of water policy. |
| 5.2 The Committee recommends that adequate resources are invested to reduce these leaks in the shortest possible timeframe. | Uisce Éireann have a National Leakage Reduction Programme and from October 2023 to September 2024 - 23,416 leaks were fixed. Investment in the various works initiatives under the Leakage Reduction Programme directly address the resilience issues in the network. Uisce Éireann are investing €250 million every year up to the end of 2030 - fixing leaks and replacing pipes to provide a more reliable water supply. |
| 5.3 The Committee recommends that the ‘First Fix Free Scheme’ remain in place and options or schemes should be explored in order to address the cost of subsequent leaks, i.e. within the boundaries of the user’s property. The Committee also recommends that the water utility engage in a national awareness campaign with regard to the existing scheme to assist with active conservation on the part of the user. | The First Fix Free scheme is still in place and aims to help reduce the amount of water wasted through leaks on customers' properties. From 1 January 2017 until 31 December 2023, 19,523 customers had a leak repair carried out by Uisce Éireann under the First Fix Scheme with 90.79 million litres of gross water savings per day (ML/day). Uisce Éireann expanded the eligibility of the scheme to make it easier for customers to access it – details can be found at: www.water.ie/help/leaks/first-fix-free |
| 5.4 The Committee recommends that a much more proactive approach be taken to promoting awareness of the importance of domestic water conservation in Ireland. | Uisce Éireann has sponsored an Taisce’s Green-Schools Water Programme every year since 2013. The programme provides education and training on ways to think differently about how to use water, both in school and at home, and to look at ways of conserving and protecting our water resources. The 2024-25 Green-Schools Water Ambassador programme was formally launched late last year. Uisce Éireann supports Green-Schools through events such as the annual Walk for Water, which coincides with World Water Day on 22 March. |
| 5.5 The Committee recommends that the Government should develop a cross departmental strategy to increase water conservation. | The Water Services Policy Statement 2024-2030 includes a commitment to establish a National Water Conservation Working Group to advise the Minister on a future strategy for water conservation and prioritisation of resources during periods of water stress. All aspects of water conservation will be considered by the working group |
| 5.6 The Committee recommends that, in order to achieve improved water conservation, all new domestic buildings should incorporate water conservation fittings. | All aspects of water conservation will be considered by the National Water Conservation Working Group. |
| 5.7 The Committee recommends that the principle of open data should be adopted for water research purposes and the data collected by the water utility, CER and the EPA should be provided to the Public Water Forum and society for analysis and decision making purposes. | The principle of open data has been adopted by Uisce Éireann and the EPA and data are freely available at: www.water.ie/open-data www.data.epa.ie |
| 5.8 The EPA’s research budget on water management and conservation should also be reviewed to ensure that it is adequate to support better water policy formulation and improved service delivery to water consumers. | The EPA is an independent public body established under the Environmental Protection Agency Act, 1992, and is entirely independent of the Minister in the exercise of its functions. In addition, the Environmental Protection Agency, as the Environmental Regulator, is the key statutory body for investigating complaints of pollution and for the enforcement, both directly and through oversight of Uisce Éireann and local authorities, of environmental legislation in Ireland, including compliance in relation to licensed urban waste water discharges. |
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