State of the art technology used to detect, trace, and fix water leak in Co. Wicklow

08 June 2023

A significant saving of 500,000 litres of water per day has been saved in Bray, Co Wicklow following the detection of a major leak on Kilcroney Lane. 

The daily water savings on Kilcroney Lane are so significant that they equate to enough water to supply the population of Rathnew for a day. Wicklow County Council water services staff on behalf of Uisce Eireann identified a potential problematic section of water main on Kilcroney Lane, using specialist leak detection equipment. The innovative technology enabled crews to identify the section of watermain that was to be further investigated for potential bursts.

Water pressure management technology was then installed on the watermain under Uisce Eireann’s national Leakage Reduction Programme. Once installed this technology was used to assist in the find, trace and repair of the damaged section of pipe that was responsible for 500,000 litres of water being lost into the ground every day.

Joe Carroll, Infrastructure Delivery Programme Manager at Uisce Éireann described the find as “one of the largest savings of our precious resource this year in Co. Wicklow. We would like to thank Wicklow County Council water service crews for their efforts in detecting the unmapped line and finding the leak.” 

Joe added “It’s hard to understand that more than 500,000 litres of clean drinking water was disappearing underground every day. Water is a valuable resource and expensive to produce, so finding this leak and successfully repairing it was of paramount importance.” 

Noel Doody, Water Inspector at Wicklow County Council also acknowledged the hard work of Wicklow County Council’s leak repair crews and thanked Uisce Eireann for funding the project under its national Leakage Reduction Programme.

“I am grateful to the residents of Kilcroney Lane, Bray for their co-operation and understanding while we carried out these works. The use of modern leak detection and pressure management technology allowed us to accurately quantify the daily supply-demand balance for the area. Thanks to the support of Uisce Éireann, these works allowed us to pinpoint the leak, quantify the volume of water saved, and allowed us to continue to drive down leakage, conserve water, and reduce disruptions on the supply which will benefit customers in North County Wicklow and the environment as a whole.”    

Securing the water supply in Wicklow remains a top priority and Uisce Éireann and Wicklow County Council are continuing with efforts to further drive down leakage to ensure that the area will have sufficient water supplies to meet the demands of customers into the future.

Identifying and repairing this leak will help Uisce Éireann to achieve our 2030 goal of a national leakage rate of 25%. The national Leakage Reduction team has made great strides since 2018 when the leakage rate stood at 46%. 

Since 2018, Uisce Éireann has invested more than €500 million to upgrade the underground water network across the country through the delivery of the national Leakage Reduction Programme. We are investing a further €250 million every year up to the end of 2030 - fixing leaks and replacing pipes to provide a more reliable water supply. 

For more information, please visit www.water.ie/reducingleaks.