The Environmental Protection Agency for Ireland is warning that while water quality in Ireland is very high, the resilience of drinking water supplies must improve and will require sustained investment into the future.

The EPA Drinking Water Quality in Public Supplies report 2023 released today, shows that over 99.7 per cent of public water supplies comply with bacterial and chemical limits, which means our public water is safe to drink.

However, many supplies still lack robust treatment measures to guarantee their long-term resilience and safety. The EPA's Remedial Action List (RAL) identifies "at-risk" supplies that require improvements to safeguard public health.

In 2023 there has been a further increase in the number of people served by supplies on the RAL (up to 561,000 – from 481,000). While it is positive to note that ten supplies were removed from the RAL following improvement works, the EPA - through enforcement and assessment activities - have identified a further nine “at-risk” supplies that were added, primarily for THM and Cryptosporidium exceedances.

Good progress has been made in other areas such as disinfection, progression of the Drinking Water Safety Plan approach and making the lead remediation grant easier for the public to access.

Key findings of the 2023 report on public water supplies include:

• 99.85% of samples comply with microbiological parameter limits.
• 99.62% of samples comply with chemical parameter limits.
• 57 supplies were on the EPA’s Remedial Action List (RAL) at the end of 2023, compared to 58 at the end of 2022.
• 91 boil water notices and 12 water restrictions were in place in 2023, affecting over 255,000 people.
• 46 (increased from 25 in 2022) of those boil water notices were in place for more than 30 days, meaning they are classed as long-term notices requiring investment in infrastructure to address.
• E. coli bacteria was detected in four supplies.
• Trihalomethanes (THM) limits were exceeded in 41 supplies, compared to 45 in 2022.
• Pesticides limits were exceeded in 23 supplies, compared to 17 in 2022.

Launching the report, Dr Tom Ryan, EPA Director said:

“Our public water quality remains very high, which means that the public can remain confident that drinking water supplied to their homes is safe to drink. However, the resilience of drinking water supplies isn’t robust enough as evidenced by more “at-risk” supplies being identified by the EPA, and an almost doubling of long-term boil water notices in 2023. Implementing the findings of Drinking Water Safety Plans will be crucial to improve the resilience of supplies- this will require corresponding sustained investment in water services to continue to provide the people of Ireland with a safe and secure supply into the future.”

One in twenty supplies failed to meet the Trihalomethane (THM) standard in 2023 and supplies on the RAL for THM’s are impacting almost 300,000 people. Greater effort is needed by Uisce Éireann to implement improvements at supplies to minimise exposure to THM’s, including at major supplies such as Limerick City, and Kilkenny City.

With regard to lead in drinking water, Noel Byrne, EPA Programme Manager, said:

“Lead in our drinking water is a cumulative risk to human health and must be removed from our drinking supply network. Despite Ireland having a National Lead Strategy in place since 2015 progress to date has been far too slow. Uisce Éireann must accelerate the rollout of their lead mitigation plan to deal with the public supply network; the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and Department of Health must outline their plans for lead replacement in public buildings and householders with lead pipes in their homes should avail of the enhanced lead remediation grant scheme to protect their health.”

In 2023, boil water notices impacted 254,000 people. Half of boil water notices were in place for more than 30 days, nearly double the number from 2022. This recent trend of significantly more long-term boil water notices needs to be reversed by Uisce Éireann and requires proactive measures to address the underlying causes and improve the resilience of these supplies.

Uisce Éireann welcomes EPA Report - "it shows Ireland’s public drinking water supplies remain among the best in the world"

Uisce Éireann has welcomed the EPA Report, saying that it shows Ireland’s public drinking water supplies remain among the best in the world, with an impressive 99.7% compliance with microbiological and chemical standards.

This is a result of the ongoing high levels of investment and improved operational measures being implemented by Ireland's national water authority, Uisce Éireann said.

Margaret Attridge, Uisce Éireann’s Head of Water Operations commented:

“Uisce Éireann operates over 700 water treatment plants across Ireland and we are committed to delivering transformative water services which enable communities to thrive.”

“The EPA report recognises the ongoing improvements made by Uisce Éireann in testing, monitoring and assessing water supplies and the key role this has played in identifying risks to drinking water quality, and ensuring a safer water supply for all. Where appropriate temporary Boil Water Notices or other restrictions are introduced to protect public health while the problems identified are addressed. Most of the Boil Water Notices imposed in 2023 were in place for less than 30 days."

In 2023 Uisce Éireann invested over €530 million in water treatment plants and networks across the country, with a number of new water treatment plants built or significantly upgraded and an additional 30 sites enhanced under the National Disinfection Programme.

A key project last year was the completion of a €59 million treated water reservoir at Saggart, Co. Dublin and we are progressing significant upgrades of water treatment plants at Leixlip, Ballyboden and Ballymore Eustace, benefitting homes and businesses in the Greater Dublin Area with a cleaner and more secure drinking water supply.

Margaret Attridge added:

“We recognise that challenges remain, and it will take sustained high levels of investment across a number of investment cycles to address all legacy issues, but we are confident that our ambitious capital investment programme will enable us to transform Ireland’s water services and ensure a safe, sustainable, secure and reliable drinking water supply for everyone now and into the future, supporting communities to thrive.”

Click here to download the EPA Drinking Water Quality in Public Supplies report 2023 in full