Cork East Fine Gael TD and Minister of State at the Department of Justice & Equality, David Stanton TD, has welcomed the lifting of the boil water notice, by Irish Water, for the Whitegate Dower rural water supply scheme as of Friday evening, 21st October.
“I understand from Irish Water that the Whitegate/Dower boil water notice has been lifted by the HSE with immediate effect. This will be a great relief to the 10,300 business and domestic customers in East Cork who, due to concerns about the safety of the water supply, have been unable to use the drink water from their taps to drink, prepare food or brush their teeth since 27th February this year”, said Minister Stanton.
“High turbidity levels in the Whitegate/Dower supply in February following very adverse weather conditions meant that there were concerns that all the water passing through the Kilvagh Treatment Plant may not have been fully treated. To ensure that this situation did not re-occur Irish Water decided to install additional treatment, storage and controls at the plant.
“A new filtration system, consisting of two microfiltration units and a UV disinfection unit, has been installed at the Kilvagh plant along with other upgrade works at the cost of €1 million. New shutdown controls will also prevent any inadequately treated water entering the water supply. These changes will provide an effective year round protection system with.
“I know that Irish Water have been working very closely with Cork County Council, the HSE and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to ensure the quality of water on the Whitegate/Dower Scheme. I am very pleased that this boil water notice has now been lifted as I know it caused considerable inconvenience to businesses and homes.
