Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Regional Group for bringing this motion, which I wholeheartedly support. It is nothing short of disgraceful that people must still fight for water 100 years after the State was formed. The motion being debated states that "clean water and wastewater systems are essential components to grow communities" and that it is essential that we invest in "the infrastructure necessary to attract families to live, work and raise their families". It is shameful that this basic infrastructure is still denied to many in this State. Too many households do not even have access to group water schemes. I commend all of the volunteers across the country who have provided water and worked so hard in their communities over the years.

In my constituency of Mayo, people are still fighting to access clean running water through community water schemes. It is wrong that they have been forced to fight tooth and nail for the most basic infrastructure requirement but it is even worse that some are being denied access to group water schemes. Downpatrick Head community water scheme thought it would finally see progress after 20 years of campaigning in June of last year when it received grant approval. However, the goalposts were then moved. The group was told that there was an additional cost of €18,000 and that it needed to find another nine houses for the scheme. This community had funding pulled from it back in 2008 and it is scared that the same thing will happen again. It is scared that all of its hard work will have been in vain.

The Murrisk water scheme has been campaigning for a clean water supply in that area for over 20 years. There are 600 households there without a clean water supply in 2021. It has still not even been allocated funding yet. If it was successful, the community would have to pay 15% up front. Every election comes around and there is always an announcement that things will happen and then nothing happens. There seems to be no understanding that some families simply cannot afford to make the payment up front.

In the middle of a global pandemic, Achill Island was left without water for months last year. The fact is that the treatment plant does not have the capacity to meet the needs of the population. I welcome that some works have been done there in recent times but we want a permanent solution to the problem of water on Achill Island. I got correspondence from Irish Water today and in that correspondence Irish Water stated that it hopes it does not happen this year and that it has put some works in place but if it does happen it will supply water through tankers. That is not good enough for rural Ireland or Achill Island.

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