MORE THAN half of the water supplied through the public mains in Co Kerry – amounting to tens of millions of litres of treated supplies – has been lost and unaccounted for on a daily basis, according to a report circulated to councillors this week.
The cold period of January and December, when taps were left running overnight and leaks went unattended in Kerry’s many empty houses for significant periods, “contributed to the water loss”, the report states.
As much as 53,611 cubic metres, or more than 53 million litres of water a day, is leaked or accessed illegally in the county, according to the environmental services report being submitted as part of mandatory annual reporting by local authorities to the Department of the Environment.
The “unacceptably high” volume of water escaping can be traced partly to defective mains, the report says.
However, unaccounted for water was a term encompassing much more than leakage from public water mains. It also included leakage from appliances and pipes on private property, unknown and illegal connections, and wastage from domestic unmetered connections. “The exceptionally cold weather in January and December 2010 led to a rise in unaccounted for water because households allowed taps to run overnight to prevent freezing. In addition, unoccupied houses developed leaks which were not attended to for long periods,” the report states.
A new method was used to collect the data on unaccounted for water, and this had contributed to the increase of 10,500 cubic metres a day on the previous year.
As well as a mains replacement programme, the council’s water department also wants domestic meters installed, saying this will inevitably reduce consumption and losses.
Some €18 million had been allocated to replace domestic mains but much more was needed, the report says.
Fianna Fáil councillor John Brassil has called on the council to take steps immediately to stop the waste and has also called for an immediate public awareness campaign. “There is a significant cost factor to all of this – this is treated water. It is totally unacceptable,” he said.