Frustration over 'slow' Uisce Éireann response to Limerick councillors

ELECTED members of the Newcastle West Municipal District have reiterated their calls to make Uisce Éireann more accountable to councillors.

At their October meeting, they complained of long wait times for responses to complaints which are made to the State utility.

Cllr John Sheahan moved a motion explicitly calling for an “overhaul” of Uisce Éireann’s communications department saying: “It is very hard to get any sort of response from them. Would we get away with doing the same? If they are replying like this to us, imagine customers.”

Cllr Tom Ruddle agreed stating: “People are ringing us and blaming the council for Uisce Éireann’s problems.”

Cllr Francis Foley echoed the sentiment saying there is “fierce frustration” among many of his colleagues. “It's either no response from them or if you do get one, you're waiting ages and ages.”

During the discussion, Cllr Jerome Scanlan stated matter-of-factly that he has had a different experience: “The responses I get from Uisce Éireann are quite satisfactory.”

He later proposed making the public body more accountable to local authorities overall.

Cllr John Sheahan also took issue with the accuracy of Uisce Eireann’s current outage alert system.

During the meeting, he cited a recent outage in Glin that he claimed was miscategorised as a burst water main when it was actually an issue with water treatment infrastructure.

In a response to a media query submitted following the meeting, Uisce Éireann emphasised the important role that local representatives play in their communities and said they are committed to keeping them informed of any planned works and operational issues.

“We engage with elected representatives through a range of channels, including the Local Representative Support Desk, elected representative briefings, direct correspondence and project updates. Our aim is to provide accurate and timely information and to support elected representatives in addressing queries raised on behalf of their constituents,” they said.

During a discussion on another motion, Uisce Éireann was criticised over the alleged poor quality of repair works.

Cllr Tom Ruddle asked for the utility to be fined if roads are not reinstated to an acceptable standard following the completion of works.

In reply to the motion, Senior Executive Engineer Ben Noonan clarified: “It's the emergency reactive works by Uisce Éireann where the damage is done. Planned works have reinstatements in their timelines.”

Cllr Sheahan warned “rocky” can be expected over the coming months, following the formal handover of responsibility for public water from local authorities to Uisce Éireann.

Uisce Éireann took over the direct management of public water and wastewater services from each individual local authority on a phased basis starting in 2023.

However, in some cases work is being done on the ground by local authority staff on behalf of Uisce Éireann.

The handover is to be completed in Limerick and across the country by the end of 2026 - meaning there will be no local authority involvement whatsoever.

Up to now, councillors have often relied on council works for updates regarding works or outages.

“They are usually ex-council workers so we have contacts. We may lose those contacts when the transfer happens and then we'll be left waiting on Uisce Éireann,” said Cllr Sheahan. “I am flagging it now because they have three months to get it right.“