Water: Statements Dail Éireann — 2026-01-21 ============================================================ John Cummins (FG), Waterford I thank the Minister for bringing us through the progress that has been made on water service delivery, including the record levels of investment in the water sector. I welcome the opportunity to speak on water again this week. I will focus on water quality and policies. Water is our most valuable resource. It is vital to our health, our economy and our environment. Securing a safe and reliable water supply is a top priority for the Government. Access to healthy rivers and lakes, groundwater and bathing waters is essential for citizens, nature and industries. Ireland has an abundance of natural water resources. However, freshwater for human use is a relatively scarce and limited resource that needs protection. The Government's water services policy statement sets out the high-level policy framework relating to the provision of water services generally out to 2030. It defines the Government's three strategic policy objectives and priorities that must be pursued in delivering and improving water and wastewater services. The first objective is availability and reliability, whereby water services will support balanced regional development by improving public and private water services through continued investment in infrastructure. The second objective is safety and quality, whereby water services will be safe and protect human health. The third objective is sustainability, whereby water services will be efficient, resilient and sustainable in the long term. The Minister, Deputy Browne, addressed how the first two objectives are being delivered through the delivery of water services for urban and rural communities. The third objective is addressed through the water sector adaptation plan, which was launched by my Department last November, and the water action plan, which was launched in November 2024. The adaptation plan outlines strategies to build a resilient water system against climate change impacts, focusing on improving water quality, securing infrastructure and managing resources through integrated catchment management, infrastructure upgrades, conservation and nature-based solutions like sustainable urban drainage systems. The overarching legislation on water quality is the EU water framework directive, which requires all member states to protect and improve water quality in all our water bodies. The Irish river basin district covers an area of over 70,000 sq. km, with 4,842 water bodies. The Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, oversees and implements the national water quality monitoring programme, which is designed to assess the overall condition of our rivers, lakes, canals, estuaries, coastal waters and groundwaters. The latest EPA report on water quality for the period from 2019 to 2024 shows that 52% of Irish surface waters are achieving at least good status, compared with 54% for the previous reporting period from 2016 to 2021. Excess nutrients remain the largest threat to water quality, and this is impacted by urban wastewater, agriculture and legacy forestry. However, notwithstanding the deterioration over the period, the EPA report shows that surface water nutrient concentrations from agriculture have reduced overall since the peak in 2018-19. I thank and acknowledge all our farming communities for the significant progress that is being made in that respect. The EPA report also shows that where actions are being targeted in priority areas for action, there is a statistically significant improvement in phosphorus concentrations. In accordance with the water framework directive, Ireland has implemented a series of river basin management plans, which are specific programmes of environmental measures to protect and restore water quality. To protect natural waters from the negative impact of human activities, many such activities are controlled through environmental authorisation, enforcement and compliance. This ensures that activities are safe and sustainable. These types of control systems include, for example, wastewater discharge licensing by the EPA and local authorities, the agricultural nitrates regulations, and environmental regulations through the planning system. Controls also include a range of other binding codes of practice for the purpose of protecting waters including, for example, domestic wastewater treatment systems and pesticides use. Most activities posing a risk to water quality must be carried out in a way that is compatible with good water quality. Comprehensive water quality standards have been established for the purpose of protecting water quality. While most activities posing a risk to water quality are regulated in some way or other, it remains a challenge to enforce environmental regulations and achieve full compliance. We also continue to pursue those activities that are not adequately controlled at present, strengthening controls and filling regulatory gaps. Our most recent plan, the Water Action Plan 2024: A River Basin Management Plan for Ireland, is derived from the water framework directive and outlines the additional measures that we will take to protect and restore our natural water resources, including rivers, lakes, estuaries and coastal waters. These measures include ongoing actions and investment across critical sectors, such as agriculture, forestry and water service provision, that bear the greatest burden in tackling pollution. The NDP funding provides for €306 million in investment to support additional targeted measures to restore and improve water quality in rural and urban settings, as well as improving river habitats. This funding will support a wide range of capital investment in water protection initiatives operated by the local authorities, by the EPA, by Inland Fisheries Ireland, and directly by my Department. This will include the development of specific, evidence-based, targeted programmes to drive water quality improvement. Firstly, the farming for water European investment partnership, EIP, that was launched in March 2024 aims to support farmers in the implementation of supplementary measures on farmland where agricultural activities can impact water quality. Secondly, a scheme which will fund urban nature-based solution projects will be undertaken by local authorities to manage surface water drainage and rainfall. Finally, a national river barrier mitigation programme will fund the removal of barriers in our rivers or the mitigation of their impacts. I recognise the role of local authorities in protecting our waters. Co-operation with and support of local authorities is at the core of all our work in this area. The local authority waters programme office is a local authority shared service provided jointly by Tipperary and Kilkenny local authorities and funded by my Department. It works on behalf of Ireland's 31 local authorities to protect and restore good water quality in our rivers, lakes, estuaries, groundwater and coastal water through catchment science and local community engagement. The local authority waters programme office will have responsibility for delivery of the programmes relating to farming and urban drainage that I mentioned earlier. One example of the work undertaken by the office is the River Nore catchment. The office has focused on community engagement, as protecting our rivers is a shared responsibility. This includes facilitating water quality training through the local biodiversity officer, and heritage week events. In addition, the office's catchment scientists will carry out local catchment assessments in 13 priority areas for action in the Nore catchment. These assessments will work to identify reasons for declined water quality and the actions needed to secure improvements. This is just one example of the work being carried out around the country that is supported and funded by my Department. This local level work complements our continued and increasing investments in upgrading our water infrastructure. It also complements the funding for innovative new approaches such as nature-based solutions, and the direct engagement with farmers that my Department is also supporting. Finally, I acknowledge the strong co-operation across Government Departments, State agencies, non-government organisations and communities in the development and implementation of these water quality programmes and initiatives. One example I have seen that is an excellent case in point is the ecopark that has been established in Dunhill. It is a nature-based solution which services the community in the area. It has been highlighted many times before and has created a real sense of community that has been added to and which also serves a function. We will continue as a Government to invest in water because of its importance. The co-operation of all stakeholders plays a key part in that. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-01-21/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-08-31T01:00:51+00:00 Sitting date: 2026-01-21