Irish Water has come under further scrutiny in Donegal after they priced a family over €60,000 to install a 270-meter water pipe to their new home.
The family, who do not want to be identified, contacted the Irish utility several weeks ago and were quoted €66,700 to place a three-quarter-inch water pipe on the premises.
Concern was recently raised following the introduction of new rules applying to the installation of water connections in April 2019.
Speaking to Donegal Daily, Cllr Michael Cholm Mac Giolla Easbuig said: “When the family contacted me initially, I actually thought they must have got this wrong.
“However, once they sent me on the documentation I was shocked and I started making contact with Irish Water and they were quite adamant that they were not overcharging and that was the correct price.”
How did Irish Water respond? “At one point Irish Water said that they saw no ‘gain’ in meeting with me on the issue,” Mac Giolla Easbuig said.
“It is very typical of Irish Water of not wanting to meet with public representatives on request, so I wasn’t shocked, disappointment yes, but not shocked.
“But I kept on at them because that is what the taxpayers pay me to do, to do my work to the best of my ability and they eventually agreed to meet me.
“But they wanted to do travel across the other side of the county in Ballyshannon, but I said that I expected them to be on-site so that they could grasp how ridiculous this is.
“They told me there would be sticking to the price and that was because of the road safety management, but I am not ignorant of grounds work. I have been on building sites and I have worked with grounds work,” he added.
“As I said to them, they must be paying the staff a couple of thousands of euro a day for that kind of money.
“I thought it was very interesting when I contacted a local contractor and he quoted the same length of a road, five metres wide and about a metre deep at €20,000.
“So with that, I would get three roads with that kind of money.”
The west Donegal councillor said the issue had sparked real concern about the number of families who could be in a similar predicament.
“So basically what Irish Water is doing here is putting that family in poverty or they are forcing them to immigrate abroad like the thousands of others in my community.
“When we were out fighting Irish Water in 2011, our concern was the likes of this would happen, that they would not look after the people and they are there to look after the welfare of the people in our community and they are not doing that,” he said.
“Irish Water needs to go back under the control fo the local authority so we can be part of the decision making on behalf of our communities.
“Over the last couple of days, I have had people coming to me wondering if this what they are going to have to pay in order to have fully working water in their homes,” Mac Giolla Easbuig added.
“All of these things have a roll-on effect and our community have already been destroyed by capitalism. Enough is enough.”
