Speaking at the Rural Water Conference in Athlone today, I called for the cost of private domestic well water testing to be made free and the testing process made more accessible.
Around 500,000 people living in rural areas rely on private domestic wells for their drinking water. The EPA recommends that wells are tested once per year but this can cost in excess of €200. Environmental health meets public health in our kitchen taps, and checking that your household has a safe drinking water supply is something that should be made free and easy. Too many people in rural areas are drinking water from contaminated private supplies, completely unaware that they are putting their health at risk.
Ireland has the highest incidence of VTEC E.coli in Europe and a substantial proportion of cases have been linked to contaminated private drinking water supplies. However, private domestic wells fall outside the Drinking Water Regulations and as such are not checked or monitored. According to the EPA, these are a potential risk to public health.
I think well water quality and free testing should be a key issue for the next Government. Free well testing is a simple measure that I think is very important for the 10% of the population living in rural areas, who depend on these private water supplies.
I have set up an Expert Group to examine the issue and see how the Government could provide more help and support, and I very much look forward to hearing their recommendations. I don’t think it’s right that the financial burden - particularly for testing - should be on people living in rural areas, when this is not the case for people in towns and cities.
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