EPA Reveals E. Coli Water Concerns

30 water supplies across Ireland are currently on 'boil water' notices or restrictions, as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says there is "more to do" to supply safe water to the public.

The EPA's Drinking Water Report for 2012 shows public water supplies serving more than 82% of the population have improved year-on-year over the past five years.

There has been a 92% reduction in E. coli exceedances in public water supplies since 2005, while the number of supplies requiring improvement is down from 339 to 140 in five years.

Remedial works on a further 70 supplies are expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Gerard O'Leary, Director of EPA's Office of Environmental Enforcement said: "The results show progress, but the results also show that Irish Water, the new state utility, has a lot of work to do to provide safe and secure drinking water to the public.

"In Roscommon, 15,443 people on public supplies are currently on boil water notices and, overall, 30 supplies across the country are currently on boil water notices or water restrictions. These figures are unacceptable."

EPA said the quality of drinking water from private supplies "remains inferior to that from public supplies and gives cause for concern."

In 2012, the HSE reported a doubling of the number of VTEC cases, a particularly harmful form of E. coli.

"We continue to be concerned about the number of VTEC cases," said David Flynn, Programme Manager, Office of Environmental Enforcement.

"Any form of E. coli is an indicator of faecal matter in the water supply, and VTEC can have particularly serious consequences. We would urge the owners of private supplies to check their water sources, and ensure that they are adequately protected and the water is disinfected."

The report also said poor weather increases the risk of contamination to water supplies, as rainfall can wash potential contaminants into water supplies.

(IT/JP)