Kilkenny hosepipe ban to remain in place until end of September

Irish Water has extended its Water Conservation Order in a number of counties, including Kilkenny, until September 30.

The Irish Water Board met today to assess the need to extend the Water Conservation Orders that will expire on Friday,  August 31 in a bid to safeguard water supply for homes and businesses across the country. The Board considered detailed analysis of drinking water sources (river flows and lake levels) from engineering experts within Irish Water and the local authorities, including the hydrologist records of OPW and the ESB and future weather forecasts.

The Board determined that the Water Conservation Order will remain in place for the Greater Dublin Area which includes Dublin, Wicklow and Kildare and in counties Louth, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, Laois, Cork, Kerry, Limerick, Tipperary, Waterford, Wexford, Carlow and Kilkenny until Sunday, September 30.

READ MORE: HOSEPIPE BAN EXTENDED

Irish Water is continuing to manage scarce resources in these areas with the local authorities and specialist contractors doing everything practical to reduce leaks, manage demands and maintain continuity of supply. Emergency work on upgrading borehole pumping plants, introducing new boreholes in some areas and deploying temporary weirs at critical river intakes are helping to maximise water available in these southern counties.

The Water Conservation Order has been lifted for the north west of the country.

The Water Conservation Order prohibits use of water drawn through a hosepipe or similar for the purpose of:

• watering a garden
• cleaning a private motor-vehicle using a hosepipe
• cleaning a private leisure boat using a hosepipe
• filling or maintaining a domestic swimming or paddling pool (except when using hand held containers filled directly from a tap)
• filling or maintaining a domestic pond (excluding fish ponds) using a hosepipe
• filling or maintaining an ornamental fountain (with the exception of such use for commercial purposes)
• use of water for filling or replenishing an artificial pond (excluding fish ponds), lake or similar application.
   

The first four weeks of August has seen some periods of rainfall nationally. In the north and west of the country, this has resulted in increased flows in rivers, some recovery in lake levels, which have been confirmed by the OPW and ESB monitoring data. In these areas, in particular, Irish Water has been able to scale back the emergency measures put in place during July, with the majority of water supplies working normally.

“The 2018 drought conditions have demonstrated the vulnerability of many of our water supplies, notably in the south, east and midlands,"Irish Water’s General Manager Eamon Gallon.

"Irish Water engineers and hydrological experts are working with experts from the EPA, OPW, ESB, local authorities and other agencies to monitor river flows and lake levels. We continue to liaise with Inland Fisheries Ireland regarding impacts of abstractions from rivers and lakes and wastewater discharges on fish life.

"This information will be invaluable to the ongoing work of developing the medium and long term water supply strategies for the country. In the coming weeks, Irish Water will publish for public consultation, its draft methodology for assessment of sustainable abstractions as a key input to the National Water Resources Plan which will be finalised in the coming months. A key element in the strategy is the provision of much greater resilience in our supplies and minimising the impact of severe weather extremes with climate change or sudden failures in sources or infrastructure.

"In the meantime, Irish Water’s immediate focus is on safeguarding water supplies by maximising water conservation and fixing leaks."