Greens reiterate call for free well water testing following EPA Septic Tank Report
The Green Party has today reiterated a call to introduce free well water testing for rural households following a damning report from the EPA on the failure rate of septic tank inspections.
Speaking following the release of the findings, Green Party Spokesperson for Nature, Heritage, Agriculture and the Marine, Senator Malcolm Noonan said that the high failure rate highlighted an urgent need for local authorities and the Government to get to grips with a real and pervasive threat to human health and the aquatic environment.
He reiterated a call that the Greens made in 2024 to introduce free well water testing for households so that householders would know what risk to their health was coming from their taps and in turn create a culture of urgency to fix faulty septic tanks.
"Around 500,000 people living in rural areas rely on private domestic wells for their drinking water. The EPA recommends that such supplies are tested once per year, however the cost of such tests can be in excess of €200. Testing needs to be made more accessible," said Senator Noonan.
“Environmental health meets public health in our kitchen taps, and checking that your household has a safe drinking water supply is something that should be made free and easy. I think well water quality and free testing should be a key issue for the next Government. It’s a simple measure that I think is very important for the 10% of the population living in rural areas, who depend on these supplies."
Ireland has the highest incidence of VTEC E.coli in Europe and a substantial proportion of cases have been linked to contaminated private drinking water supplies. However, private domestic wells fall outside the Drinking Water Regulations and as such are not checked or monitored. According to the EPA, these are a potential risk to public health.
Senator Noonan added:
“Too many people in rural areas are drinking water from contaminated private supplies, completely unaware that they are putting their health at risk. I have set up an Expert Group to examine the issue and see how the Government could provide more help and support, and I very much look forward to hearing their recommendations. I don’t think it’s right that the financial burden - particularly for testing - should be on people living in rural areas, when this is not the case for people in towns and cities.”
The Green Party said that the EPA report also pointed to a lack of consistency across local authorities around inspections and enforcement and that many sensitive water bodies are under real pressure from faulty septic tanks.
"Government and local authorities need to step up and show leadership on this long running problem. Since testing began in 2013, very little progress has been made in reducing risk. We need a significant ramp up in inspections, enforcement, free well water testing and critically, consistency across all local authorities. It is a public health and environmental problem that needs to be dealt with real sense of urgency," concluded Senator Noonan.
