Water infrastructure failures put 885,000 at risk, watchdog says

At the Ballymore Eustace water treatment plant in Co Kildare a coagulant dosing pump failure affected filtration and the effectiveness of disinfection and the plant’s cryptosporidium barrier was compromised, the EPA said. Picture: Colin Keegan/Collins Dublin

Two significant water infrastructure failures put almost 900,000 at risk last year, including hospitalisations and sickness in local communities, the environmental watchdog has said. 

In its water quality report, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) criticised Irish Water's progress in upgrading and managing vulnerable infrastructure around the country.