East Cork boil water notices 'a disgrace': 'We’re supposed to be a first-world country'

Uisce Éireann is under fire as residents have had to spend thousands of euro over the last seven years on bottled water, writes Sean O’Riordan

Eoin Fitzpatrick estimates there have been at least eight boil water notices since 2016 in East Cork, including Ballycotton where he lives. Picture: Denis Minihane

People served by a stricken water supply system in East Cork have spent hundreds of thousands of euro on bottled water due to almost constant boil water notices — and it looks likely they’ll have to continue digging deeper into pockets until at least 2026.

Meanwhile, calls that they should be compensated appear to have fallen on deaf ears.

Since early 2016 there have been repeated boil water notices issued to approximately 9,500 people on the Whitegate Water Supply Scheme.

It provides water to Whitegate, Aghada, Cloyne, Saleen, Ballycotton, Ballinacurra, and parts of Midleton.

The supply is coming through highly silted underground channels. Conventional ultraviolet treatment to kill bacteria cannot pass through the silt.

As a result,  Uisce Éireann (formerly Irish Water) has on numerous occasions had to issue boil water notices after consultations with the HSE.

Eoin Fitzpatrick initially responded to boil water notices by doing just that — boiling up the kettle for every drop of drinking water his family consumed. However it is so cumbersome that, like most householders in East Cork, he now buys bottled water at great expense. Picture: Denis Minihane

The utility’s last boil water notice was issued last October. It was hoped it would have been discontinued in the summer, but it has been extended for the foreseeable future.

Uisce Éireann put forward a proposal for a €20m upgrade of the supply system, which includes new treatment procedures to make the water safe to drink.

Cork County Council granted planning permission for the upgrade. However, objections have been lodged recently to a new treatment plant and those will have to be decided on by An Bord Pleanála.

The utility had hoped to have the new system operational by the end of 2025. The best-case scenario now is 2026.

Eoin Fitzpatrick and his family live in Ballycotton. He estimates that, since 2016, there have been at least eight boil water notices issued for the scheme “with small periods of remittance between them”. The 48-year-old married healthcare company manager, who is the father of two teenage boys, said: 

“During that time I have not seen one water tanker coming into the area.”

Eoin said that, for the first couple of notices, he and his family did boil water — but doing so became too cumbersome and, like most householders, he now buys in bottled water.

He said there is constant confusion surrounding information on the boil water notices and, like others, he is critical of the utility company’s communications.

“If I go on the Uisce Éireann website it can say it [the supply] is OK — but if I go on the Whitegate one it says it isn’t, even though they’re on the same system,” he said. “There was a boil water notice issued in Dublin and the issue was fixed almost immediately. Obviously we are too far from the epicentre of power and we are left to rot.

Ballycotton publican Sean McGrath says: 'The water presented to us isn’t fit for purpose. I had to get a water treatment system installed in the bar and it cost me thousands of euro.' Picture: Dan Linehan

“Access to proper water is a UN human right. We’ve been too quiet about this for way too long. We’ve water pouring out of the sky yet we have this. It’s insane.”

His mother, Rita, is fortunate to live next door.

“It would be pretty hard for her to lift a five-litre bottle of water on her own. I pity elderly people in the area who don’t have help, it’s not fair on them,” Eoin said.

Sean McGrath has owned McGrath’s pub in Ballycotton for 37 year. Running such a business requires clean water. Ice can’t be made from what comes out of the taps.

The pub trade is suffering as it is and he doesn’t need the hassle of a boil water notice almost constantly hanging over his head.

“The water presented to us isn’t fit for purpose. I had to get a water treatment system installed in the bar and it cost me thousands of euro.

“On the one hand we get the HSE doing hygiene inspections [in pubs] but, on the other hand, Uisce Éireann is giving us water not fit for purpose,” he said.

Sean said that, over the years, when he’s had issues with the supply he’s had to contact a call centre.

“You seem to get on to somebody in India. They’re very nice and try to help. But trying to explain an issue in Ballycotton to somebody in an Indian call centre isn’t easy,” he said.

TD tallies the cost

The issue has been repeatedly debated at municipal and full county council meetings in the past few years and, more recently, was highlighted in the Dáil by Fine Gael Cork East TD David Stanton. 

Fine Gael TD for Cork East, David Stanton, reckons an average family of four in the affected area is likely to have been spending €64 per month on bottled water. File picture: Brian Lougheed

Mr Stanton urged the relevant minister for state, Malcolm Noonan, to ask Uisce Éireann about potential compensation for the thousands of customers on the supply scheme.

Mr Stanton, who lives in Midleton, said the water supply issue is causing people to buy in bottled water, or boil what comes out of the tap. 

He said that, considering the increases in electricity prices, it is a further burden on some people who are already struggling financially.

Mr Noonan said he would ask the utility about potential compensation and said he accepted almost 10,000 people have been badly affected and put out by having to buy bottled water daily.

“It’s difficult when people have young babies and use baby formula,” Mr Noonan said. “ It’s a huge inconvenience. We all want to see this notice lifted without undue delay but only when the HSE and EPA have confirm the water supply is safe can we do so. I take on board the points the deputy made and will convey them to the minister for housing and, in due course, to Uisce Éireann.”

However, since then there has been ‘radio silence’ on the issue and Mr Stanton readily admitted to the Irish Examiner that “it’s not looking like it [compensation] is going to happen”.

“Householders have to spend between €1.39 and €1.49 on 5l of water from their local supermarkets,” Mr Stanton said. 

This adds up to a minimum of €16 per month for a recommended consumption of 2l of water per day, and a minimum of €64 per month for a family of four. 

Mr Stanton and county councillors had previously called on numerous occasions for the project to be fast-tracked by the utility, especially considering the number of people impacted and the length of time it has been going on.

“I’m concerned that there are some people out there who can’t afford to keep buying bottled water and they may get ill as a result of drinking the tap water,” Mr Stanton said. “There are also people who have recently moved into the area who don’t appear to know of the boil water issues. That’s another concern.”

Local Fine Gael councillor Michael Hegarty said he is worried a decision by An Bord Pleanála could take a long time. He said previously the planning appeals board always issued rigid decision dates. However, since the recent upheavals in the board, many are now not adhered to and it could take many months before a conclusion is reached.

“I have been in contact with An Bord Pleanála asking them to fast track the decision-making process because it’s a substantial piece of infrastructure and the lack of it is causing significant disruption,” he added.

Eoin Fitzpatrick lives next door to his mother, Rita Fitzpatrick. 'It would be pretty hard for her to lift a five-litre bottle of water on her own,' he says. 'I pity elderly people in the area who don’t have help, it’s not fair on them.' Picture: Denis Minihane

“If Uisce Éireann doesn’t provide compensation, there should be a government grant given to those people who’re being impacted,” Mr Hegarty said. “There’s a lot of frustration out there, but it should be easy to work out who’s on the water supply line and provide them with some aid.”

Susan McCarthy, a councillor who lives in Midleton, said plastic bottles generated by the water problem are an environmental concern too.

“This is going on for seven and a half years and nearly 10,000 people are impacted,” she said. “Can you imagine how many plastic bottles of water have been consumed during that time.

What's your view on this issue?

You can tell us here

“It’s a kick in the face to the environment when you have agencies coming up with plans for climate action and you’ve this. It’s a disgrace. We’re supposed to be a first-world country.”

An Uisce Éireann spokesman said they acknowledge the inconvenience the boil water notices are having on the community and they’re “continuously working towards lifting them as soon as it’s safe to do so”.