28 May Thousands left without water ‘for up to another 12 weeks
CAROLINE CRAWFORD – 27 MAY 2013
ROSCOMMON County Council has confirmed that thousands of residents will be left without water for a further ten to 12 weeks following the latest cryptosporidium outbreak.
The council confirmed that it has now appointed a contractor to install a temporary UV and filtration system at the Roscommon central water scheme. However, officials confirmed it would take up to 12 weeks before the plant is operational.
Boil water notices have been in place in a number of areas around the county for thousands of residents for the past three weeks leaving 14 people in need of treatment.
“The expected duration of the contract is 10 to 12 weeks and following commissioning and discussions with the EPA and HSE, the boil water will then be lifted,” said a council spokesperson.
Roscommon County Council is carrying out the works after receiving emergency funding of over €300,00 from the Department of the Environment to deal with the latest outbreak.
The Department has approved funding of €309,258 towards the installation of an interim treatment plant. The council will contribute an additional €103,086 to cover the total cost of the scheme.
A spokesperson for the council said it was continuing to carry out farm surveys in the area in order to find the source of the cryptosporidium outbreak. An information leaflet which outlines steps that can be taken to protect waters from contamination is being issued to each landowner.
Officials are also awaiting the results from the re-testing of samples from the Boyle and Boyle/Ardcarne supply and a precautionary boil notice remains in place in these areas.
Testing is also being carried out on a new production well at Castlerea Regional Suppl to determine if the water quality can allow the UV treatment system already in place to operate within its validated range. If so it will become the new source for the scheme and following discussions with the HSE and EPA the boil notice could then be lifted.