Water down the drain, and money too

THERE are few things people take for granted as much as they do water.

We just turn a tap and expect clean, potable water to pour forth. There may be nothing more important to life, but do we give it a second thought? Ensuring that people have a regular supply of water that’s safe to drink is a challenge for the Government and local authorities. Ireland is in danger of failing to meet EU water quality challenges.

That’s saying nothing about cost and wastage. Our ailing and leaking supply system gets just 57% of all treated drinking water to our taps, while 43% is lost in delivery. This compares badly with losses of between a tenth and a quarter for our European neighbours.