Half the population’s sewage is not being properly treated before it is pumped out into our rivers and seas.
That means 500 million litres of potentially contaminated wastewater is released into the environment every day.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says the virus and bacteria load poses a health risk to people and is harming aquatic habitats.
The agency says it will take 20 years and billions of euro to rectify the situation.
It warns, however, that Irish Water has “no clear action plan or time frame” for improvement works at many of the problem areas the EPA has identified as priorities.
Up to the middle of this year, 32 small towns and villages were discharging raw sewage into their local waterways because they had no treatment plants.
That is the equivalent of three Olympic-sized swimming pools of untreated sewage being released every day.
Three villages have since been connected to a new treatment plant in Co Wexford but testing to ensure it is working correctly is still ongoing.
A further 12 cities and large towns are discharging inadequately treated sewage that falls below mandatory EU standards.
By far the biggest problem is the Ringsend treatment plant in Dublin – the largest in the country – which the EPA says is “overloaded and fails to consistently treat sewage to the required standards”.
A major upgrade has been under way there for four years but is still not due for completion until 2025.
That will be 20 years after the deadline the EU gave Ireland for getting all wastewater treatment infrastructure up to standard.
In total, just 51pc of the country’s sewage is being treated to the required standards – far below the EU average of 90pc.
“Sixteen years after the final deadline to comply, half of Ireland’s sewage is still not treated to the standards set to protect the environment,” said Noel Byrne, EPA programme manager. Irish Water defended its record, saying it made unprecedented investment in improving wastewater infrastructure in recent years – reaching a record high of €367m last year – and it was close to eliminating the raw sewage problem.
Brian Sheehan, the utility’s infrastructure delivery director, said: “Irish Water is committed to protecting and enhancing our natural environment by ensuring the highest standards.
“Since 2014 when Irish Water assumed responsibility for public water services, 60pc of raw sewage discharges by volume have been eliminated through targeted investment in new sewerage infrastructure where none existed previously,” he said.
“We are on target to eliminate nearly all of the remainder by 2025.”
However, the EPA said the work would not be completed until 2027 – and only if the schedule was adhered to.
“Over the years Irish Water produced various plans and timeframes to eliminate discharges of raw sewage,” it said.
“However, Irish Water often changed these plans and extended its own timeframes to complete this work, thereby prolonging the risks to the environment and public health.”
Six areas are subject to a 2019 order from the European Court of Justice to upgrade the public sewers which are inadequate to collect all the wastewater and rainwater that flows into them, leading to overspills.
They are Cork city, Fermoy, Mallow, Midleton, Athlone and Roscommon.
The EPA said it was not satisfactory that it was expected to take until 2030 before all were upgraded.
In 12 areas, inadequately treated sewage is threatening the endangered freshwater pearl mussel.
EPA director Tom Ryan acknowledged there had been improvements but said the work must intensify.
“Irish Water has failed to produce action plans to improve treatment at one-third of the priority areas identified by EPA where wastewater is harming our rivers, lakes and coastal waters,” he said.
He said it was essential that clear action plans and time frames were provided quickly.
(Source – Irish Independent – Environment – Caroline Doherty – 20/10/2022)