Brady Calls on Minister to Ensure Safety of Water Supply

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Brady Calls on Minister to Ensure Safety of Water Supply

Saturday, April 7 2007

Cllr. John Brady has called on Minister Dick Roche to ensure Wicklow's drinking water is safeguarded.

"A few weeks ago, the EPA stated that the Bray sewage treatment plant was below the level required for a town the size of Bray," Brady said.

"Then shortly after that, a drinking water crisis in Galway sickened over 150 people through the cryptosporidium virus. That germ is found in water polluted with inadequately treated human or animal waste," Brady said.

"I did some research in to this and found out that the HSE carries out tests regularly for Wicklow County Council to detect the e-coli virus. But they won't check for cryptosporidium due to the cost. I am told the former is only a few euro while the latter can cost between €700 and €800," Brady said.

"I am calling on Minister Roche, who is both a Bray resident and the State's highest environmental official, to ensure funding is released to maintain the safety of Wicklow's water supply. This is now a very wealthy country. We must make resources available for such simple matters of basic safety," Brady said.

Brady noted that in Roche's adopted town of Bray, an old unlicensed landfill is leaching dangerous chemicals in to the adjacent County Brook Stream. When Brady brought that to the attention of Wicklow County Council, they ran some tests and also found sewage was present in the water. "The Minister cannot get away from these matters by blaming local officials. He has ultimate responsibility for the State's environmental actions. He needs to accept responsibility and ensure the safety of the Irish people," Brady concluded.

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