Water quality in private water supplies (small private supplies and private group schemes) is not as good as public water supplies.
Small private supplies provide drinking water to, for example, schools, nursing homes and hotels. Private group schemes cover 376 community run supplies.
1,600 small private drinking water supplies are registered, but the total number remains unknown as there is no legal requirement to register.
Unregistered supplies are not sampled by local authorities and may unknowingly be providing unsafe drinking water to consumers.
Failures due to E. coli in private group schemes reduced to 14 in 2025, down from 24 in 2024.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today released its Drinking Water Quality in Private Group Schemes and Small Private Supplies 2025 report. The report highlights that drinking water quality in private supplies continues to fall short of the standards achieved by public supplies delivered by Uisce Éireann.
There are approximately 370 private group schemes supplying drinking water to more than 194,000 people in rural communities across Ireland. In addition, over 1,600 small private supplies are registered with local authorities, providing drinking water from their own wells to commercial and public activities, such as schools, crèches, nursing homes, hotels, camping sites and sports clubs.
The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (DHLGH) in 2023, identified the need to strengthen the governance, oversight and management of private water supplies. Progress on implementing measures to address this deficit has been slow. The DHLGH must implement these reforms as a priority.
A key first step is to make registration a legal obligation for small private supplies. Currently approximately 1,600 small private supplies are registered, but it is estimated that there are many more not registered.
Launching the report, Mr Pat Byrne, Director, EPA Office of Radiation Protection and Environmental Monitoring said: “It is unacceptable that people visiting a local business or using local amenities could unknowingly consume water from a well that is not registered or sampled, putting themselves and their family’s health at risk. Suppliers should act immediately and register their supplies, so they are monitored by local authorities, giving suppliers and consumers confidence in the quality of their drinking water.”
Small Private Supplies – Water Quality Compliance. The presence of E. coli bacteria in drinking water means it is contaminated and that it poses a risk to people’s health. Small private supplies continue to have poorer E. coli compliance than public water supplies provided by Uisce Éireann, with 67 supplies failing the standard in 2025. This is a compliance rate of 95%.
Private Group Schemes – Water Quality Compliance. Fourteen private group schemes, supplying 1,854 people, had E. coli failures in 2025 – down from 24 in 2024. Six of these, however, had repeat failures of E. coli in both 2024 and 2025 due to a combination of operational and infrastructural issues creating risks for consumers. In 2025, seventeen private group schemes, serving 19,362 people, failed the Trihalomethane (THM) standard. This represents only a minor improvement on 2024, when 19 schemes failed to meet the standard.
Mr Noel Byrne, Programme Manager of the EPA’s Office of Radiation Protection and Environmental Monitoring said: “While there has been some improvement in E. coli compliance in group schemes, the continued failures in several private group schemes shows that more action is needed. Local authorities must work closely with suppliers to identify the causes of failures and ensure corrective actions are put in place. Where suppliers do not act, or where failures persist, local authorities must escalate enforcement action, so consumers are protected.”
The EPA report on Drinking Water Quality in Private Group Schemes and Small Private Supplies – 2025 is available on the EPA Website HERE.
Urgent action required to address household emissions and reduce exposure to fossil fuel price volatility says Climate Change Advisory Council.
The Built Environment sector accounted for 12.5% of total greenhouse gas emissions in 2025.
Residential building emissions fell year-on-year by 5.0%, while emissions from commercial and public buildings fell by 3.5%, primarily due to a warmer winter.
Launching the Built Environment chapter of its Annual Review 2026 today, the Council said increased investment and faster rollout is needed in retrofitting, heat pumps, solar PV and district heating to reduce emissions, improve comfort and health outcomes and to protect citizens against volatile energy costs.
Although there has been a reduction in built environment emissions, the Council says these reductions should not be mistaken for structural progress. While residential and commercial/public buildings remained within their first sectoral emissions ceilings for 2021–2025, the outlook for the next carbon budget period is much more challenging. Both residential buildings and commercial and public buildings are projected to exceed their second sectoral emissions ceilings for 2026–2030 by 22% and 62% respectively.
The review warns that progress on local authority social housing retrofits remains too slow, with only 10,370 homes retrofitted since 2021. Approximately 5,000 retrofits are needed on average each year between now and 2030. The Council is calling for increased, sustained and ring-fenced multi-annual funding in Budget 2027 to allow local authorities to accelerate retrofit delivery and meet the Government’s own targets of 36,500 social houses brought to BER B2 or cost-optimal standard by 2030. The review also highlights solar PV as one of the fastest routes to lower bills and widen participation in the energy transition. It recommends the roll out of solar PV across local authority housing stock and that a national framework should also be put in place for plug-in solar to allow apartment dwellers to benefit from solar energy.
The Council says delayed and incomplete policy frameworks are now creating uncertainty for households, local authorities, industry and investors. For example, the delayed National Building Renovation Plan, due last December, has prompted the European Commission to open infringement proceedings in March. The plan should be published immediately, with a clear pathway to phase out fossil fuel boilers by 2040 as required under the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive. The Council identifies the requirement for a National Heat Strategy based on spatial planning, system diversity and resilience, to identify where district heating, geothermal energy, heat pumps and other low-carbon heating solutions can be most effectively deployed. The Council acknowledges Cabinet approval for revisions to the General Scheme of the Heat (Networks and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, but the legislation has slipped repeatedly and must now be finalised and enacted to give district heating the regulatory certainty it needs.
On resilience, the Council wants to see a clear programme of work so the Built Environment and Planning sector can develop and implement a dedicated Sectoral Adaptation Plan in the next plan cycle. Ensuring our built environment is resilient to immediate and future climate change impacts, such as heatwaves and flooding, is paramount to securing the future of our communities. In addition, the Council also recommends that Government expedite the development of coastal change management plans in priority vulnerable areas. Mr Alex White, Chairperson of the Climate Change Advisory Council, said: “As long as Ireland remains heavily dependent on fossil fuels to heat homes and buildings, our households, businesses and public services will remain exposed to global price volatility and energy insecurity. The Government has set the right ambition to end Ireland’s reliance on fossil fuels. The test now is delivery. We have the solutions and we know there is an appetite for them, but they must be enabled through policy and legislation. These solutions must be funded to deliver lower-cost clean energy for Ireland. Our communities also need plans and solutions to prepare for the impacts of climate change, especially coastal areas and those that are at risk of flooding. This transition must be fair. Social housing retrofit is one of the clearest tests of delivery. The State owns this housing stock, the targets are clear, and the benefits for households are immediate. To meet the 2030 target, local authorities will need to retrofit around twice as many homes each year as were delivered in 2025.”
Ireland collected a record €5.879 billion in environment-related taxes during 2025, according to new figures published by the Central Statistics Office.
Receipts increased by 7%, or about €380 million, from €5.499 billion in 2024. This was the highest annual total recorded during the CSO’s 2016–2025 reporting period. Households carried the largest share of the burden, contributing €3.468 billion, equivalent to 59% of the total. Businesses and other economic sectors paid most of the remainder.
Energy-related taxes continued to generate the most revenue. They rose by 12% to €3.924 billion, accounting for roughly two-thirds of all environmental taxes collected during the year. Excise duty on petrol, road diesel, marked gas oil and other hydrocarbon fuels generated €2.09 billion. Carbon tax receipts increased by 10%, from €1.083 billion to €1.189 billion.
Revenue from the Public Service Obligation Levy on electricity consumers also rose sharply, increasing from €63 million in 2024 to €228 million in 2025.
CSO statistician Ms Clare O’Hara said the overall increase was mainly driven by higher receipts from the electricity levy, fuel excise duties and carbon tax. Transport-related taxes brought in a further €1.925 billion, although that figure was 2% lower than in 2024. Vehicle Registration Tax generated €933 million, while motor tax paid by households and businesses raised a combined €927 million, with businesses paying €232 million. Pollution and resource taxes remained a very small part of the total. Levies including the plastic bag levy and landfill levy generated approximately €30 million, representing just 0.5% of environmental tax receipts.
Climate advisers call for targeted supports The figures were published as the Climate Change Advisory Council urged the Government to maintain the planned increase in the carbon tax to €100 per tonne of carbon dioxide by 2030. In its recommendations for Budget 2027, the council called for environmentally harmful fossil-fuel subsidies to be phased out. It argued that recent emergency reductions in fuel excise duty were insufficiently targeted and were likely to provide the greatest benefit to higher-income households.
The council said future cost-of-living measures should focus on vulnerable households while helping people permanently reduce their dependence on fossil fuels through measures such as home retrofitting and improved public transport. The Government has extended temporary fuel-tax reductions until September 1st, 2026, after which the previous rates are expected to be restored gradually over four months. The extension is estimated to cost the Exchequer €270 million.
The advisory council also called for greater transparency over carbon-tax spending. It cited findings that only 61% of ring-fenced revenue was spent on its intended measures between 2020 and 2023.
Despite reaching a record cash total, environmental taxes represented 4.3% of Ireland’s overall tax revenue in 2025, compared with 7.7 per cent in 2016.
Tipperary Firefighters responding to the major wildfire on Slievenamon mountain returned to Cahir, to discover that vehicles belonging to crew members had allegedly been broken into and damaged.
The incidents occurred on Barrack Street, in Cahir, Co Tipperary, during the early hours of Saturday morning, while local crews were continuing their prolonged effort to control the mountain fire. Tools, personal possessions and equipment used by some of the firefighters in their everyday work were reported stolen. Several cars, vans and jeeps were also damaged.
Gardaí are investigating a number of incidents of theft and criminal damage involving vehicles parked on Barrack Street between 12.30am and 1.30am on Saturday, 25 July. A technical examination of the area has been carried out. Anyone who witnessed suspicious activity or travelled through the vicinity during that period is being asked to contact Cahir Gardaí.
Investigators are particularly interested in footage from dash cams or other recording devices.
The incident is considered as deeply demoralising for firefighters who had spent days away from their families battling the Slievenamon blaze. These selfless individuals haven’t been home to their families for days, while selfish disgusting lowlifes have taken advantage of them.
A fundraising page has since been established to support the firefighters affected by the thefts and help replace stolen equipment and damaged property. The break-ins happened as emergency crews continued to tackle flare-ups and hotspots across Slievenamon. Tipperary Fire and Rescue Service reported another difficult period on Saturday, with renewed fire activity on the mountain’s southern side, following an earlier reduction in intensity.
Ground operations were intensified today, Sunday, as crews responded to flare-ups and monitored the wider affected area. Specialist equipment has been deployed to help firefighters operate across the mountain’s challenging terrain.
A coordinated, multi-agency operation remains in place to contain the fire and prevent further spreading or reignition. Smoke may remain visible at times, particularly on the eastern side of Slievenamon. Residents, especially people with respiratory conditions, have been advised to take appropriate precautions when necessary.
The public is also being urged to remain clear of the affected areas and avoid interfering with emergency operations.
The Government’s decision to designate the proposed Shannon water pipeline, as “critical infrastructure”, represents a significant new development in a project that could profoundly affect North Tipperary and the wider Shannon region.
Officially known as the Water Supply Project for the Eastern and Midlands Region, the scheme is now one of the first nine projects placed at the “top of the queue” under the Critical Infrastructure Act 2026. It is one of three water projects selected, alongside the Greater Dublin Drainage Project and the upgrade of the Bunlicky Wastewater Treatment Plant in Limerick. The proposed scheme would take water from the lower River Shannon at the Parteen Basin in County Tipperary, treat it at Birdhill and carry it through a pipeline running across Tipperary, Offaly and Kildare to Peamount in County Dublin. Uisce Éireann says the project would provide a second major water source for the eastern and midlands region, reduce its heavy dependence on the River Liffey and help meet future housing, population and economic demands.
However, the scale of the proposal remains enormous. The planning application involves the abstraction of more than 300 million litres of water on certain days, according to reported project figures. Uisce Éireann describes this as a maximum of approximately 2% of the Shannon’s average flow at Parteen Basin. The utility’s current estimated cost is between approximately €4.6 billion and €6 billion. However, documents previously supplied by the Department of Housing to the Public Accounts Committee indicated that the final bill could exceed €10 billion under a worst-case risk scenario.
This new designation does not automatically grant planning permission, nor does it direct An Coimisiún Pleanála to approve the application. What it does is place a legal obligation on relevant State bodies to prioritise the project, allocate the necessary administrative and technical resources and reduce the time taken to process decisions, licences, consents and other authorisations. Public bodies are also expected, where possible, to carry out different approval processes simultaneously rather than waiting for one process to finish before beginning another.
That distinction is important. The project must still comply with planning law, environmental assessment requirements and Ireland’s obligations under European Union law. The designation is intended to accelerate decision-making, not predetermine its outcome. Nevertheless, from a Tipperary perspective, the Government’s announcement clearly increases the political and institutional pressure surrounding the project. Only weeks ago, An Coimisiún Pleanála postponed its expected decision on the application. Its official case record now states that a decision is due by 2nd July 2027. That postponement is not merely an administrative delay. It provides crucial breathing space for communities, farmers, environmental organisations, public representatives and independent experts to examine the proposal in full.
The central questions have not disappeared simply because the Government has labelled the pipeline nationally important. ► What would sustained abstraction mean for the Parteen Basin, Lough Derg and the lower Shannon during drought or unusually low-flow conditions? ► Have alternatives; including stronger leakage reduction, greater use of existing regional water sources and less centralised supply options, been adequately examined? ► What protections and enforceable guarantees will be provided to communities in Tipperary? ► How reliable are the cost projections for a project stretching approximately 170 kilometres and potentially lasting many years? ► Does placing the project at the “top of the queue” risk creating pressure for speed at the expense of proper scrutiny?
The eastern and midlands region undoubtedly needs a secure and resilient water supply. That need, however, cannot be used to silence legitimate questions from the county, where the water would be taken, treated and initially transported. Critical infrastructure status should demand a higher standard of evidence, transparency and accountability, not a lower one.
The period before July 2027 must therefore be used constructively. Tipperary needs clear hydrological evidence, independent environmental analysis, transparent costings and binding commitments concerning local water security and the protection of the Shannon system.
The Government may have accelerated the project politically, but it has not answered the fundamental questions surrounding it.
For Tipperary, the planning postponement remains a vital opportunity to ensure those questions are heard before any irreversible decision is made.
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