HOWTH was just one of the areas named in last week’s EPA report that highlighted where untreated water is discharged into the sea.
The scenic Northside fishing village was among 22 of the 43 urban areas where the planned building of sewage treatment plants had been put back by between six months and three years.
The EPA report made the point that just three new plants were built to deal with the problem of raw sewage since their 2014 report.
The agency noted that significant funding is required for waste water treatment if pollution and health risks are to be avoided.
A total of 142 large towns and cities complied with mandatory EU waste water treatment standards during 2015, while 29 failed.
The EPA report on Urban Waste Water Treatment in 2015 demonstrates that Ireland is not spending enough, or quickly enough to deal with the problem.
Commenting on the report, Gerard O’Leary, Director of the EPA’s Office of Environmental Enforcement, said: “The pace of resolving waste water treatment needs to improve. It is not acceptable that the timeframe to eliminate the discharge of raw sewage from over 20 areas has slipped by almost two years.
“We need to see increased capital investment and improved efficiencies in the delivery of the outstanding infrastructure necessary to protect our rivers, lakes and coastal waters and for a more sustainable quality of life.”
Waste water discharges has contributed to poor quality water at six popular beaches including Merrion Strand.
David Flynn, Programme Manager of the EPA’s Office of Environmental Enforcement, added: “EPA analysis has found that better operational practices should resolve issues at one fifth of poorly-performing plants. Irish Water needs to improve the performance of these plants to get the most from the existing infrastructure.”
A spokeswoman for Irish Water, which took over responsibility for waste water treatment plants from 2014, said investment was increasing.
“Using the EPA figures, published today, it is clear that between 2000 and 2010 €270m annually was invested in wastewater infrastructure in Ireland.”
However, it was pointed out that from 2011 to 2013, there was a 50 per cent drop in investment in wastewater infrastructure.
“When Irish Water took over responsibility in 2014, the national utility set about reversing that trend,” the spokesperson added. “Between 2014 and 2015, Irish Water increased the investment in wastewater to €166m, an increase of 22 per cent. From 2016 – 2021, the remaining period of the Irish Water Business Plan, the utility is ramping up investment.”
to spend an average of €326m per year on wastewater infrastructure” the spokeswoman said.