Erin McGreehan (Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister of State. I am sure he will read a statement from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and highlight the fact that the Department has recently changed the grants for septic tanks. This changes, which are very welcome, include increasing the maximum grant from €5,000 to €12,000 and removing the requirement to have previously registered a domestic wastewater treatment system with the local authority to be eligible for a grant. For the few who can apply and avail of this grant, this will very much reduce the risk from defective tanks. However, there is a pressing need to improve access to the septic tank grant for homeowners. Our rivers, lakes and waterways are huge assets for the environment, tourism and health. Recent findings from the Environmental Protection Authority, EPA, have highlighted that there has been no significant improvement in water quality. We all know that one of the contributors to the decline in water quality is inadequate maintenance of septic tanks and the delay by Irish Water in upgrading wastewater systems. We see raw sewage being emptied into our rivers and seas, an issue we often speak about in the House.

If septic tanks are not properly maintained, they release harmful substances into the environment, contaminating water sources. As the responsible body, the Department has a duty to take action and ensure all septic tanks meet the required standards. Currently, access to septic tanks is hindered by the low inspection rate and a lack of proactive testing by homeowners. Both of these issues need to be addressed in order to alleviate the strain on the infrastructure and preserve our precious water resources. By increasing the rate of inspection of septic tanks through regular inspections, we can identify areas of concern and take action to alleviate and rectify any issues. By investing in additional inspectors and streamlining the inspection process, we can ensure that septic tanks are regularly monitored and maintained to the highest standards. This would go a long way in preventing the release of harmful substances into our water sources and improving water quality.

This year, the European Commission referred Ireland to the European Court of Justice for failing to correctly transpose the water framework directive which protects waters from pollution. We are not seeing any significant improvements in the water quality of rivers and lakes. There are approximately 60,000 housing units in County Louth. In the past couple of years, Louth County Council has carried out on average between seven and ten annual inspections. I am not very good at maths but it will take Louth County Council a very long time to inspect septic tanks. The grant is available now, and the Minister has made a move to improve the grant and the access to it. We now need to increase the rates of inspection and the number of homeowners who are eligible to apply for the grant.

Every year - and I am sure it is the same for the Minister of State - I get queries from people about applying for grants for a septic tank upgrade when renovating their house. We should be extending access to the grant.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an Seanadóir. As the Senator will be aware, the Department provides funding for water services in rural Ireland where no Uisce Éireann services are available. The Department's multi-annual rural water programme uses Exchequer funding to deliver improvements to water services in rural Ireland. As part of the funding provided, the Department currently has three separate grant schemes available to households for domestic wastewater treatment systems, known as septic tanks. These grants schemes are administered on behalf of the Department by local authorities. The purpose of the grants is to provide financial help to households for work to septic tanks to protect human health and the environment and to help Ireland meet its commitments under the river basin management plan.

As the Senator is aware, under the water services legislation and regulations, the owner of a domestic wastewater treatment system is responsible for ensuring that it is fit for purpose, including its maintenance and repair, to prevent a risk to human health and the environment. All these grants are focused on the areas of greatest environmental priority and are not general in application. In consultation with key stakeholders, the Department has recently completed a review of the three grant schemes.The Minister, Deputy O'Brien, listened to the views of the sector and significant improvements have been made to the terms and conditions and to the funding available. For each grant, the maximum amount available has been increased from €5,000 to €12,000 and the qualifying condition that the septic tank must have been registered with the local authority before 1 February 2013 has been removed. I understand that the Minister has no plans to make any further changes to the grant at this time.

Erin McGreehan (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for his reply, which is the one I expected. In his response, he said that the focus is on areas of greatest environmental priority and of course that is very important but the problem is that we are only taking action when the horse bolts. Prevention is better than cure. If we have defective septic tanks and homeowners willing to improve and upgrade them, surely the Department should respond responsibly, particularly given how we are failing to improve our water quality. If homeowners want to improve their tanks and need support to do that, surely we should allow for proactive improvement of same.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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In making these improvements to the scheme, it is hoped to encourage more householders to avail of the funding available. This will help to reduce the risk of negative environmental impacts from defective septic tanks. The changes come into effect on 1 January 2024 and it is expected that the improvements made will result in more applications for septic tank grants in 2024 and beyond.