Works continue to drive down leakage across Mullingar

20 December 2021

Securing the water supply in Westmeath remains a vital focus for Uisce Éireann with works progressing in Ballinea to drive down leakage and improve the water supply for customers. Working in partnership with Westmeath County Council, Uisce Éireann is replacing old and problematic water mains in Mullingar to provide a more reliable water supply, reduce high levels of leakage and improve water quality to homes and local businesses.

The works, which began on 13 December, involve the replacement of almost 1.2km of old, cast iron water mains along the R390 in Ballinea. The old mains are being replaced with new, high density polyethylene (plastic) pipes which will reduce the number of bursts and water outages impacting customers and ensure a more reliable supply of water for the local community. The works also involve laying new water service connections from the public water main in the road to customers’ property boundaries and connecting it to the customers’ water supply. Where existing service connections on the public side are lead, these will also be replaced as part of this improvement work.

To facilitate the safe delivery of these works, a temporary disruption to supply including low pressure and outages is required tomorrow, Tuesday 21 December from 10am until 2pm impacting customers in the following areas: Ballina, Kilpatrick, Habsorough, Strattonstown, Dundonnell, Byranstown and surrounding areas in Mullingar. Crews will make every effort to minimise the disruption to impacted customers and will work to complete these works as quickly and as efficiently as possible. It typically takes two to three hours following restoration time for the network to refill and normal water supply to fully return.

Some traffic management may be necessary, however, local and emergency access will be maintained. Uisce Éireann and Westmeath County Council regret any inconvenience these essential upgrade works may cause. Customers can find helpful tips and advice on how to prepare for planned works and avoid issues with their water supply by visiting www.water.ie/prepareforworks. Uisce Éireann and Westmeath County Council regret any inconvenience these necessary improvement works may cause.

These works are being carried out on behalf of Uisce Éireann by GMC Utilities Ltd and are expected to be completed in early 2022.

Speaking about the project Matt Thomson, Leakage Reduction Programme Regional Lead with Uisce Éireann said: “These works are vital to ensure a more secure water supply to homes and businesses in Mullingar and are part of a significant investment by Uisce Éireann to safeguard the water supply. We understand this type of work can be inconvenient and we will ensure our work crews make every effort to minimise any disruption these necessary works may cause. We would like to thank the community of Mullingar for their patience and cooperation while we continue to deliver these vital water network improvement works and safeguard the water supply now and into the future”.

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.

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 is responsible for the delivery of all public water and wastewater services in Ireland. We are committed to continuously upgrading and developing critical infrastructure to support the growth needed in housing and across our economy, while protecting the environment and safeguarding water supplies.