Irish ‘shower of wasters’ in water management

THE Irish are “a shower of wasters” when it comes to water, the Green Party said yesterday.

Launching the Green Party’s water policy yesterday, party leader Trevor Sargent castigated the Government for “its failure to conserve and protect Ireland’s water quality”.

The Greens want to prioritise clean drinking water as a quality of life indicator, along with GNP and GDP.

“The Government has a bad name nationally and internationally in the area of water management. The World Water Council puts Ireland 66th in relation to efficiency of water use for domestic, agricultural and industrial use.

“Unless Green Party policy on efficient management, safe provision and protection of water as a vital resource is implemented, then the Irish people will be hit, not just with ill-health but also financially as the EU introduce fines for non-compliance with EU Water Directives.

“The Government seems unaware that farming, industry and tourism also rely on clean sources of water, not to mention the many species of wildlife reliant on clean, fresh water habitats.”

Throughout the world, a third of people rely on water sources which are not renewable.

This will grow to two-thirds by 2050, he said. Green Party deputy leader and Euro candidate for the East, Cllr Mary White, said the latest Environmental Protection Agency reports underlined concerns about the quality of drinking water for tens of thousands involved in group water schemes.

“The overall quality of drinking water supplied by these schemes remains unsatisfactory.”

She urged the Government to insist that the EPA protects the public bycarrying out more water tests.

“We are also calling for the test results to be published locally and not embedded in a annual EPA report,” she added.

Green policy

Promotes the use and re-use of water more effectively.

Advocates new laws to control the spread of slurry and chemical fertilisers.

Urges harsher penalties for those who fail to respect buffer zones between slurry spreading and water sources.

Encourages more stringent regulation of chemicals in industry.

Supports a ban on phosphates and all phosphate detergents.