New water supply being sought for Swanlinbar

Cavan County Council has confirmed that water restrictions imposed by the HSE for Swanlinbar have entered their fourth week. The ‘Do Not Drink and Do Not Wash’ warning came into places as a result of elevated chlorine levels detected in the local public water supply.

The confirmation of the remaining restriction comes as Deputy Brendan Smith received confirmation from Irish Water that it is investigating an alternative water supply source for Swanlinbar.
The Fianna Fáil TD said this is the latest difficulty with the quantity and quality of supply to the town and its catchment area: “An alternative water supply source should be prioritised for investment and the people in Swanlinbar and its catchment area need to have a reliable and up-to-standard public water supply.”

In correspondence with Deputy Smith, Irish Water said a new treatment plant will ensure the supply is robust and able to supply water to all EU and Irish standards.
Commenting, Peter Gallagher, Irish Water said: “Irish Water and Cavan County Council are aware of the inconvenience this notice is causing for customers on this scheme. We would like to apologise to these customers and thank them for their patience and assure them that both organisations are working hard to have this notice lifted as quickly as possible. We will continue to liaise with the HSE until the situation is rectified, we will issue a further update later this week.”
The alternative water supply continues to be available for customers at the car park to the rear of O’Reilly’s filling station in Swanlinbar and customers are advised to boil the water from these tankers before consumption as a precautionary measure.