Uisce Eireann have outlined a trial project which they hope will end the shocking brown water situation in Dundalk for once and for all. Houses all over Dundalk have been reporting cases of dirty looking brown water for a number of years and in recent months frustrations have began to boil over with no apparent end in sight to the problem. The brown water is caused by manganese in the pipes which is naturally occurring in the environment and is safe at lower levels. It can however be dangerous at higher concentrations although Uisce Eireann insist that water coming from Cavanhill is tested regularly and is perfectly safe to drink.
Last week Uisce Eireann, the state owned body in charge of water said there would be no quick fix to this issue and that the best case scenario for an end to the issue would be the end of 2026. That will only happen if the upcoming trial pilot project they are launching in five locations around the county is successful. If, however, the trial is not a success, plan B will be initiated and results for that plan won’t be seen until 2029. A spokesperson for Uisce Eireann explained what the initial trial will involve.
“We are going to trial a new network rehabilitation system using high velocity flow to clean the lining of existing cast iron watermains. The process circulates water through a section of the network at a time via fire hydrants, using fire hoses which pass through a fine filter chamber vessel.
“This removes sediment and biofilm during the process without discharging water to drains. The water is returned to the system after the cleaning process. There is normally no need for water to be isolated during the process as the velocity of used exceed the normal rates. The locations being trialled are as listed below.
1 Boyle O Reilly Terrace.
2 Marian Park.
3 Cluain Enda.
4 Mullacrew.
5 Blackrock.
The pilot project is underway at the plant with results expected after the three month trial. If the trial works then improvements will be seen in the intermittent discoloration from the end of 2026, if not the long term solution will be 2029,” read the statement.
Local Fianna Fáil councillor Seán Klly attended a briefing with Uisce Eireann representatives in Cavanhill last week but with further issues reported with brown water around town since that meeting the current Dundalk Municipal District Cathaoirleach wrote a letter to Uisce Eireann stating that they needed to do better in communicating these issues with the public and that public confidence in the body is currently at ‘rock bottom’.
“Unfortunately in the last 36 hours we have had widespread brown water in this area of Dundalk once again. Adding to this issue there was no advance warning or subsequent communication from Uisce Eireann to state it was happening.
“This leads to serious complaints being received from the public to us as public reps and them relying their concerns about water quality.
“It is simply not good enough that we are being kept in the dark like this. As stated last week we need a dedicated contact person for the Dundalk area to deal with our issues and to inform the public.
“Uisce Eireann must also come up with a comprehensive communications plan to inform the households and businesses of Dundalk when is the plans for Cavan Hill going forward. A simple to read booklet delivered to each household/business would be a start.
Nothing less is acceptable at this point, confidence in communications at Uisce Eireann is at rock bottom and rightly so given the failure to adequately inform the public about a necessity like water,” stated Cllr. Kelly.
