Irish Water is investing over €820,000 in a watermains project which will ensure a clean and secure water supply for the 591 people served by the Rathmullan Water Supply.
This supply is on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Remedial Action List (RAL) for high levels of Trihalomethanes (THMs) and these works are being undertaken to remove any risk posed by THMs and ultimately remove the supply from the EPA’s list.
The works which are currently being carried out including the installation and commissioning of over 3km of water main in the Rathmullan area.
Two watermain booster pumping stations will also be constructed at Milford and Milbrook. The watermains replacement is broken down into 570m of watermains to be replaced in Milford, 1,460m from Ray to Rathmullan and 1,220m at Millbrook. Irish Water is working towards a summer completion date for this project.
Irish Water has put in place the first national THM plan and a prioritised programme of investment to address all inadequacies in drinking water parameters including THMs. By 2021 the utility plans to reduce the number of schemes on the RAL to zero with an investment of €327 million in upgrading water supplies at risk from THMs.
THMs are chemicals formed by the reaction of naturally occurring dissolved organic material with chlorine which is used for disinfection in order to protect against pathogenic bacteria.
Speaking about the project Irish Water’s Capital Programme Regional Lead, (North West) John McElwaine, said “Irish Water is working in partnership with Donegal County Council to continually improve drinking water quality throughout the county. This particular project in Rathmullan will greatly enhance the quality of water supplied to people served by the Rathmullan Water Supply.”
This project forms part of Irish Water’s investment plan where works have been prioritised to address the most critical issues in line with commitments outlined in Irish Water’s business plan. Delivery of the business plan will involve a €5.5bn investment in capital spending on drinking water and wastewater quality and capacity and new infrastructure up to 2021.
