RESIDENTS OF a Galway suburb, whose water supply is contaminated with lead, gathered at City Hall yesterday for a protest where they called on Galway City Council to install water filters in their homes.
For the past six weeks, the residents of Old Mervue have had to buy bottled water or to draw water from a tank in their housing estate after tests revealed high lead levels in their water supply.
Cllr Terry O'Flaherty, who last night proposed at a city council meeting that water filters be installed in all affected homes, said the situation for residents was "totally and grossly unfair".
"Installing these filters is the only solution to this problem in the short term," she said.
Protesters at the rally were angered at the prospect of having to draw water from a tank throughout the winter months.
Anne Egan, of the Mervue Senior Citizens Committee, said that everyone in the area was annoyed at the situation.
She said that a simple lead filter system, costing approximately €50,000, should be installed in all 251 affected homes immediately.
In August, tests revealed that there were high lead levels in the water supply in four residential areas in Galway: Shantalla, Bohermore, Mervue and Claddagh.
About 100 protesters carried placards, one of which read "Water, Water everywhere and not a Drop to Drink" and another saying "Let's Get the Lead Out".
Sally Gallagher, a resident in Old Mervue said: "We are going up and down carrying water the whole time, and also buying it. It is terrible what is going on."
The council's strategy has been to adjust the pH level of the water and to bring in experts to help them solve the problem. The long-term agreed solution is an overhaul and replacement of the piping system, which is expected to take between two and five years.