Demand leads to rationing of water

Dara Bradley

Connacht Tribune

Water conservation measures remain in place in Roundstone due to pressure problems.

Irish Water blamed “increased seasonal demand” for water in the popular holiday destination for reduced water pressures in the village.

There were further outages on Saturday, due to a “significant leak” on Errisbeg Group Water Scheme.

The utility confirmed approximately 500 customers are served by the scheme, “but this figure would be greatly inflated during the busy summer period with tourists.”

The caretaker of the public scheme identified the leak which was repaired on Sunday morning. This leak repair has resulted in pressure increases in the village of Roundstone. However, there are still pressure issues due to “exceptionally high demand” on the scheme, Irish Water said.

The problem first emerged over the August Bank Holiday weekend, when some areas of Roundstone, particularly the village, were without a water supply for several hours.

Water was restored to all areas on the Bank Holiday Monday but Irish Water and Galway County Council has agreed a plan with businesses to conserve supplies.

The plan involves turning off of a booster station from 12 noon to 6pm daily to help preserve water and ensure a continuous supply for the majority of customers during peak business hours.

“This action will lead to increased water pressures for customers in the village of Roundstone during these times but it will mean that customers in areas surrounding the village may experience a reduction in pressure,” a spokesperson said.

It follows on from leak detection work which was undertaken a fortnight ago and some network reconfiguration work which was undertaken last weekend.

The County Council and Irish Water say will monitor the situation. They expect the status quo to return in the coming weeks when demand falls again after the peak holiday season.

Irish Water apologised for inconvenience cased to customers.

Users in Roundstone have been asked to be “mindful of their water consumption during this busy summer period” and to report any leaks they see on the public network.

The customer care line is open 24/7 on 1850 278 278.

Meanwhile, Irish Water and the County Council has apologised for disruptions to supplies in Headford.

The disruption to supply was to facilitate leak repair works on the water network. The areas affected included Ballyfruit Group Water Scheme, Ashthorn Avenue, and Shrule Road.

There were outages in the Kinvara area last week, too, due to repair works on a burst watermain.