Appreciating water - We take far too much for granted

OVER the last two months the pivotal, irreplaceable role water plays in our lives has been underlined in so many ways.

We saw the destructive force water can bring to bear in November’s floods. At the other end of the spectrum thousands of families and homeowners have not had the clean water supplies we take so much for granted over recent days and weeks. In a few instances homes have been without water since before Christmas.

Water supplies are being disrupted all over the state as some local authorities introduce rationing because of dwindling reserves or burst pipes.

Ironically, homeowners who followed local authority advice not to run taps overnight to prevent freezing are worst hit. They are paying a penalty for trying to do the right thing while others, those who left taps running, do not. This is, in so many unattractive ways, an apt metaphor for modern Ireland.

Environment Minister John Gormley said some reservoir supplies had run “dangerously low” and urged people to conserve water. Dublin City manager John Tierney said reserves were “seriously depleted”. In Dublin demand for water increased by 25% and exceeded 624 million litres on Monday.

Mr Tierney may blame householders, but burst or just plain old leaking pipes have contributed as well.

This unfortunate situation raises questions on several fronts. The first must be if we appreciate what we have – do we realise what it takes to provide each of us with an almost limitless supply of drinking water? Have we any idea of what that costs? Secondly, are we doing enough to protect the water sources we depend on?

Considerable efforts have been made to improve drinking water quality and to reduce the pollution of our rivers and lakes, but the battle is being lost. Despite new EU regulations and significant financial investment we have not made sufficient progress. During the last two decades the percentage of pollution-free rivers has nearly halved, falling from 30% to 17%. This decline is an indictment of those who pollute and of those responsible for protecting our water resource.

A recent report from the EPA suggests the situation is even grimmer than imagined. The EU Water Framework Directive indicates that half of our rivers and lakes need remedial work to satisfy EU standards before a 2015 deadline.

Urban development and intensive farming are the main culprits, while forestry contributes also. This has been known for many years, but the political will to challenge special interest groups and to change the situation has – surprise, surprise – not materialised.

European Commission influence may change that and unless we clean up our waterways we face huge fines from Brussels. We have just five years to put things right or, at least, to show that we are serious about our obligations. Why do we have to wait until the EU waves a big stick before we do what is in our best interests?

It is expected that water charges will be introduced in the medium term. Government must not look on this as a supplement to central funding, rather, the money must be ringfenced to protect and improve water supplies and delivery.

There is huge work to be done in this area, and if people are convinced that improved and more secure water supplies will follow water charges then there can be little argument about their introduction.