Two decades is “too long to wait” to fix Ireland’s wastewater treatment woes, the environmental watchdog has warned, as there are still 16 towns and villages discharging raw sewage every single day.
The Environmental Protection Agency has published a report on urban wastewater treatment for 2023 which has highlighted a 45% reduction in the number of towns and villages discharging raw sewage since the beginning of last year.
However, wastewater treatment in many areas is not good enough to prevent wastewater discharges from impacting rivers, estuaries, lakes and coastal waters, and according to Uisce Éireann’s own estimates it could take over 20 years to meet the required standards.
While many of the problems can’t be fixed in the short term, the EPA said it had identified 73 priority areas where improvements in wastewater treatment are most urgently needed to protect our environment. Uisce Éireann has yet to begin upgrade works at half of these.
“Investment has resulted in stopping raw sewage discharges during the past year from 13 towns and villages that were priority areas highlighted by the EPA,” EPA director Dr Tom Ryan said.
“[But] without an ambitious and sustained investment programme to build out our wastewater treatment infrastructure it could take over two decades to achieve the required standards to protect the environment.
“At an operational level, Uisce Éireann’s slow progress in designing and delivering the solutions needed at the waters most affected by wastewater discharges are prolonging impacts on water quality.”
Europe sets general treatment standards for large towns and cities across the bloc and 10 areas, including Dublin, failed to meet these basic standards in 2023.
“Upgrade works required at the final four areas, Lahinch, Cloyne, Moville and Malahide have not started and may take until the end of the decade to complete,” the EPA report said. “Uisce Éireann should accelerate the pace at which this work is being delivered.”
The report, as well as urging further investment, includes further recommendations such as the need to speed up its overdue assessments of how wastewater discharges impact shellfish waters, and to collect better information about discharges of untreated wastewater through storm water overflows.
In a statement, Uisce Éireann said it supports the EPA’s assertion significant investment will be needed. However, it also said it was making “strong progress” in addressing priority issues following “decades of underinvestment”.
Its senior wastewater delivery manager Michael Tinsley said: “Uisce Éireann requires the continued support of Government and all stakeholders and it is imperative that Uisce Éireann is given appropriate consideration in the legislation at planning, policy and project level as currently large infrastructure projects can take over 10 years to deliver due to the time required to secure planning and other consents.”
