Environment « Thurles Information

Vulnerability Of Ireland’s Drinking Water Must Be Urgently Addressed.

Vulnerability of Ireland’s drinking water supplies must be urgently addressed by Irish Water.

The quality of drinking water from public supplies is high, with over 99.7% of samples compliant with bacterial and chemical limits.
At the end of 2020, 46 vulnerable water supplies – serving 1 million people – required significant works, with over half experiencing delays.
Over 15,500 people were on boil water notices for longer than one month.
It will take decades for Irish Water to remove all lead connections at their current rate of replacement.

The EPA Drinking Water Quality in Public Supplies Report 2020 released today, shows that the quality of drinking water in public supplies remains high, with over 99.7% compliance with bacterial and chemical limits. The continued high levels of water quality being achieved are positive for consumers and indicate that the water is safe to drink.
However, improvements are needed in our drinking water infrastructure to protect public health. Delays in the delivery of these improvements at water treatment plants by Irish Water means that water supplies remain vulnerable for longer, posing a risk to the health of a large portion of the population.

The EPA’s Remedial Action List identified 46 vulnerable supplies (serving 1,000,000 consumers) with significant issues to be addressed by Irish Water at the end of 2020. This figure is down from 77 supplies in 2017. Through EPA targeted enforcement, Leixlip has since been removed from the list, after works there resulted in a more secure water supply for over half a million people. However, improvement works at almost half of these supplies will now take longer to complete than was anticipated at the end of 2019.

Launching the report, Dr Tom Ryan, EPA Director said:

“It is good news that our water is safe to drink today, but we cannot say with confidence that it is resilient into the future. The EPA remains concerned about the vulnerability of many drinking water supplies nationally. Irish Water needs to fix the remaining supplies on the EPA’s Remedial Action List without further delay. Recent incidents at Gorey and Ballymore Eustace water treatment plants have highlighted the absolute necessity for Irish Water to ensure our public water supplies are properly and effectively operated, and managed, to protect public health.”

The EPA has also found deficiencies in the national disinfection programme, and a continued lack of focus by Irish Water and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage on plans to remove lead from supply connections and assessments of the extent of lead pipework in public buildings on lead in public buildings.

Mr Noel Byrne, EPA Programme Manager, said:

“15,500 consumers were on Boil water notices for over a month in 2020, and 145,000 households still have lead connections from water mains, which highlights the vulnerabilities that exist in drinking water supplies.

Irish Water must expedite lead connection replacements and progress improvements to disinfection systems – including addressing the issues with the disinfection programme identified by the EPA – to ensure that the quality of drinking water is adequately safeguarded.”

The EPA Drinking Water Quality in Public Supplies Report 2020 and the complete list of public water supplies currently on the Remedial Action List – including details of the proposed remedial measures and associated timeframes – are available on the EPA website.

Major Study Shows Agreement For Action Regarding Climate Change

Major new study shows overwhelming agreement amongst the Irish public on the threat of climate change and the desire for action.

The results of the EPA survey on the Irish people’s beliefs, attitudes, policy preferences and behaviours are emphatic:

Irish people are in almost full agreement that climate change is happening and 85% are worried about it.
91% of people say climate change is important to them personally and (79%) say climate change should be either a “very high” or “high” priority for the Government of Ireland.
Irish people strongly support a range of policies to address climate change. People also think that climate action will increase jobs, economic growth and quality of life (78%).
Scientists, experts and the EPA are very highly trusted sources of information about climate change.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has today published the first report from its ‘Climate Change in the Irish Mind’ project. This work was undertaken by EPA and the Yale University Program on Climate Change Communication (its academic partner) in support of the National Dialogue on Climate Action. The project aims to develop a better understanding of the Irish population by conducting a baseline study of public climate change beliefs, risk perceptions, policy preferences, and behaviour of the Irish public to climate change.

The project will deliver three key outputs: 1) A Climate Change in the Irish Mind report; 2) A segmentation report and 3) an online interactive map.

Today’s report “Climate Change in the Irish Mind” is based on a nationally representative survey of more than 4000 people during the summer of 2021, conducted by the survey research firm Behaviours and Attitudes.

Speaking about the report Ms Laura Burke, Director General EPA said:

“The findings of this report are definitive. This is an important first step in a very valuable project that will help to understand how Irish people perceive the environmental challenge, and that can fundamentally change how we all communicate on the topic. The findings of the survey clearly demonstrate that the Irish people overwhelmingly recognise the threat, feel personally affected and want to see real change. It demonstrates that – as a country – we are ready for the transition to climate neutrality and resilience; people see the benefits to themselves and Ireland in general and many are already advanced on the journey.”

This is the first study of its kind to be undertaken in Ireland using Yale’s internationally recognised approach. The project will deliver three key outputs: 1) Climate Change in the Irish Mind report; 2) Segmentation report and 3) an online interactive map. The findings will be used to support climate change awareness and engagement campaigns, the design of national policy and climate action.

There are very high levels of awareness of climate change amongst the Irish population, people are informed and understand the implications of a changing climate. They see that opportunities exist for jobs, innovation and wellbeing in taking climate action.

Speaking about the report, the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Mr Eamon Ryan TD said;

“The cornerstone of the National Dialogue for Climate Action (NDCA) is to engage and empower everyone in society to transition towards a climate neutral economy in a way that is fair, just, and accessible. This research shows that Irish people are well informed and understand and support the need for climate action. The research programme will provide valuable insights as we develop policies and initiatives that will support people as we make this transition together.”

People want the government to act by developing climate friendly policy. They are also willing to change their political and consumption behaviours but to a lesser degree. This demonstrates that people are aware of the systems changes that are required to effect change and they are also aware of their own responsibilities to act. This points to the need for more behavioural insights as to what supports people need to affect change.

Dr Anthony Leiserowitz, Director of the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication said:

“The Irish people overwhelmingly accept the findings of climate science and strongly support a whole-of-society response. They are ready for a national dialogue on climate action and primed to lead the world by their example.”

Further information: Emily Williamson, EPA Media Relations Office 053-9170770 (24 hours) or media@epa.ie

Liberty Square Falls Foul Of Storm Barra.

Liberty Square in Thurles, Co. Tipperary, has suffered some mild damage as a result of current prevailing Storm Barra, with the strong gale and heavy rain, removing one strand of Christmas lighting, west of the junction with Liberty Square and Slievenamon Road, [On the money side].
Council personnel were fast on the scene to remove the electric cabling and lights crossing the roadway.

At least one of the badly staked, newly sown ‘Italian Alder’ (Alnus Cordata), trees on the Square has also bowed its knee to the prevailing south westerly galeforce wind.

Stay indoors and stay safe for the remainder of this evening.

EPA Calls For Urgent Action On Ireland’s Waste Volumes & Falling Recycling Rates

EPA calls for urgent action to address Ireland’s rising waste volumes and falling recycling rates.

Waste generation in Ireland increased significantly in 2019.
Municipal waste increased by 6% to 3.1 million tonnes,
packaging waste increased by 11% to 1.1 million tonnes,
hazardous waste increased by 10% to 0.6 million tonnes and
construction waste increased by 2.6 million tonnes to 8.8 million tonnes.
Ireland’s recycling rates for municipal waste and packaging waste have declined, with more waste being sent for energy recovery. Ireland faces a widening gap to meet ambitious new EU recycling targets from 2025 onwards.
To address Ireland’s rising waste volumes and falling recycling rates, we need to transform existing business models into circular ones, that promote waste reduction, reuse and recycling. Circularity roadmaps are needed for key economic sectors, including the construction, manufacturing and food processing sectors, supported by clear policy, legislation, and national targets.

Waste generation in Ireland continues to rise while recycling rates are falling, according to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) National Waste Statistics Summary Report for 2019, which publishes the most recent official data on waste generation and management in Ireland. The report reveals some worrying trends.
Waste generation in Ireland increased significantly in 2019. Municipal waste increased by 6% to 3.1 million tonnes, packaging waste increased by 11% to 1.1 million tonnes and hazardous waste increased by 10% to 0.6 million tonnes.
Ms Sharon Finegan, (Director of the EPA’s Office of Environmental Sustainability), said,
“A circular economy is one that is based on less waste and more reuse of materials; these trends show Ireland is going in the wrong direction. Our rising levels of waste are unsustainable and need to stop. Systemic change is needed across all economic sectors to shift the focus to designing out waste and promoting reuse and recycling.”

The past decade in Ireland has seen dramatic changes in waste management. Only 15% of municipal waste was landfilled in 2019, compared with 61% a decade earlier. There has been a significant increase in the share of municipal waste sent for incineration with energy recovery over the same period, from 4% in 2009 to 46% in 2019.
Ireland’s recycling rates for municipal and packaging waste have been in gradual decline for a number years, as efforts to improve recycling have been outstripped by the growth in waste being generated and the amount being sent for energy recovery.
Our recycling rate for municipal waste has fallen from 41% in 2016 to 37% in 2019, while the recycling rate for packaging waste has declined from 70% in 2013 to 62% in 2019. The trends show that Ireland is facing a widening gap to meet ambitious new EU recycling targets from 2025 onwards.

Commenting on the trends, Dr Tara Higgins, (EPA Senior Scientist) said,
“Ireland’s declining recycling rates are a significant cause for concern. Recent moves to allow soft plastics such as films and wraps into our recycling bins, continued expansion of brown bin services to households, new requirements for all packaging to be reusable or recyclable by 2030 and a levy on waste recovery are among the suite of measures needed to increase recycling and close the gap to new EU recycling targets”.

Ireland also continues to have some significant waste infrastructure deficits and relies on export for a number of key waste streams, including municipal, packaging and hazardous waste. These trends point to the need for expansion of Ireland’s waste treatment and recycling capacity in order to extract the maximum value from waste materials here in Ireland and reduce the emissions associated with transporting waste over long distances.

New Trees On Liberty Square, Thurles, Offer A Certain Continental Charm.

With the relocation of seven (7) new ‘Italian Alder’ (Alnus Cordata), trees, newly sown on Liberty Square, Thurles; these deciduous trees, native to high elevation areas in Southern Italy, are sure to bring a certain continental charm to our town centre.

**Four of seven *‘Italian Alder’* trees sown this week on Liberty Square, Thurles, Co. Tipperary**. *Pic. G. Willoughby*.

Growing to a height of up to 25m (82ft) and with a spread of some 8m (26ft); same trees are native to southern Italy.
Italian Alder is a tall, fast-growing, deciduous tree of conical habit, with the flowers appearing before the leaves.
The slender cylindrical male catkins are pendulous, reddish and up to 10 cm (4 inches) long. Pollination is in early spring, before the leaves emerge. The female catkins are ovoid, when mature in autumn, dark green to brown in colour, similar to some conifer cones. The small winged seeds disperse through the winter, leaving the old woody, blackish cones on the tree for up to a year afterwards.

The glossy, mid-green leaves themselves are heart-shaped with very finely serrated edges and stay on the tree as late as December, especially in milder areas. Italian alder is highly wind-resistant and tolerant of very poor soils, as it is able to obtain nitrogen from the air. It will also tolerate high levels of pollution and heavily compacted soils, making it a useful urban tree.

With the occasional uncouth barbarian often visiting our town, usually at night, hopefully these trees will be protected soon by metal tree guards, at least until roots properly take hold.