Irish Water briefed Galway city council on the progress of works to reduce bursts on the city’s aging, increasingly leak prone water mains this week.
Leak reduction works are being carried out throughout the city, focusing on replacing the oldest of water mains that have shown to be prone to frequent bursting.
This week a 700m section of water main in Briarhill will be opened, replacing one that regularly burst, and next week works will commence on the White Strand Road.
Irish Water’s Leakage Reduction Programme Lead Dave Murphy commented that the briefing, “Outlined the works being carried out and the benefits that these projects will bring to residents, businesses and visitors to Galway city and surrounding areas.”
“The benefits include improvements to water supply, water pressure and reduced leakage. Once complete customers will enjoy an improved flow of water ensuring a more secure supply.”
These emergency works on the most leak prone section of water main in Galway are part of a larger programme of main rehabilitation that will replace 19km of water main around the city.
€10 million is being invested in this programme of works that will replace aging pipes in Prospect Hill, Claddagh, Bohermore, Shantalla, Rahoon, Newcastle, Taylor’s Hill, Mervue, Roscam and Coolagh.
Padraig Hanly, Programme Regional Lead with Irish Water, said this issue has been building for a long time.
“Burst water mains are a common problem across the country from decades of under investment in water infrastructure.”
“Irish Water is committed to addressing this and the replacement of these ageing water mains is part of Irish Water’s ongoing investment in Ireland’s water infrastructure.”
This project is being carried out in stages, replacing short sections of pipes at a time to minimise the disruption for homes, businesses, and road users.
Where works are taking place, home and business owners in the affected areas will be informed 48 hours ahead of time.
Since 2017 Irish Water has spent €526 million on water services, but according to their own estimates capital investment in the regions of €700 million a year is needed over the next several decades to address the poor quality of Ireland’s water infrastructure.
Works prioritising the most needy areas have been outlined in Irish Water’s business plan up to 2021, which calls for €5.5 billion in investment in water quality and infrastructure.
