Essential works due to take place in Greystones to safeguard supply

Uisce Éireann, working in partnership with Wicklow County Council, continues to progress with water leakage savings works in Greystones to improve the security of supply and reduce high levels of leakage in the area.

As part of these works, essential upgrades are being carried out on a 400mm Trunk Main at Killincarrig. To facilitate the safe delivery of these works, a temporary loss of water supply to homes and businesses in Greystones and surrounding areas is required on Wednesday night, 29 September from 8pm until 8am the following morning, Thursday 30 September. Advance preparation works will be undertaken in advance to minimise the disruption to impacted customers and the team will make every effort to complete these works as quickly and as safely as possible. It may take 2-3 hours following restoration time for the network to refill and normal water supply to fully return, however, please continue to follow the HSE guidance on handwashing.

Some traffic management may be necessary, however, local and emergency access will be maintained. Uisce Éireann and Wicklow County Council regret any inconvenience these necessary improvement works may cause and thanks customers for their patience while we complete these essential upgrades.

Customers can find helpful tips and advice on how to prepare for planned works and avoid issues with their water supply by visiting the Prepare for works in your area section of our website.

Speaking about the improvement works, Joe Carroll, Water Network Programme Lead with Uisce Éireann said, “The size and scale of the leakage challenge nationally is well documented. These essential works involve the installation of a new Pressure Reduction Valve (PRV) which is likely to have a significant long-term impact on the levels of leakage being recorded in the drinking water network in Greystones. High flows into the network when demand is low can cause excessive leakage and bursts, especially at night. Similarly, when demand is high the current valves can result in low pressure being experienced across the town. With more controlled flows in the network, we will be able to implement further leakage reduction works and are confident we will see significant savings across the network. In addition to the leakage savings expected, the improvement to drinking water is critical to future growth and development in the town.”

The Uisce Éireann customer care helpline is open 24/7 on 1800 278 278 and customers can also contact us on Twitter @IWCare with any queries. For updates please visit the Supply and Service Updates section of our website. These essential works are being carried out by Ward & Burke Construction on behalf of Uisce Éireann in adherence with current HSE and government guidance on Covid-19.

This project is one example of how Uisce Éireann is working in partnership with Local Authorities to provide a more reliable water supply and reduce leakage. Fixing leaks can be complicated but we are making progress. In 2018 the rate of leakage nationally was 46%, by the end of 2020 it was reduced to 40%. We are currently on course to achieve a national leakage rate of 38% by the end of 2021.

Uisce Éireann continues to work at this time, with our Local Authority partners, contractors and others to safeguard the health and well-being of both staff and the public and to ensure the continuity of critical drinking water and wastewater services. Uisce Éireann would like to remind people to follow the current HSE COVID-19 advice and ensure frequent handwashing.