Councillors demand Government grants for households with hard water

CAVAN County Council is to ask for grants for households with a high concentration of lime in their public water supply.

It was also agreed at a meeting of the local authority on Monday that councillors will further ask the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment, Darragh O’Brien, for grants for households with high levels of manganese in their water systems.

The grants would be for people who need to replace dishwashers, washing machines and other household appliances, which get clogged up with limescale; and for those whose clothes are discoloured due to presence of manganese in their water supply.

Councillor Clifford Kelly (FF) brought the motion to the council.

He said he attended a meeting with Uisce Éireann in Portlaoise recently, which was attended by 30 councillors from local authorities around the country.

At that meeting Irish Water made it clear the presence of lime and manganese is not in its brief. “There is nothing to compel them to do anything about this problem,” Cllr Kelly revealed to his fellow members.

He reported that one representative from Uisce Éirenn said lime is, in fact, good for people’s health especially their bones. “But try saying that to the people affected,” the Kingscourt man said.

Cllr Kelly said a grant could help people invest in a filtering system to help people who cannot afford to keep replacing dishwashers and showers.

Independent councillor Shane P. O’Reilly said he has had to replace the iron in his house 11 times in four years.

Cllr Áine Smith fully supported her party colleague’s motion saying it was a great motion and described how the school in which she teaches, St Mogue’s in Bawnboy, had to install a special filter system so that pupils could drink the tap water there.

“I’ve heard that lime in drinking water causes gallstones in the liver over time,” she said.

With tongue firmly in cheek, Cllr O’Reilly thanked “Dr Kelly” for his health information but, on a serious note, said that he has had complaints from people in the caring profession who have to wear light-coloured clothes about the manganese in their water, which discolours items of clothing in the wash.

He asked for a request for grants for households experiencing this problem to be included in any written request to the minister.

Sinn Féin Councillor Damien Brady also supported Cllr Kelly’s motion.

He said he has worked with various water systems all his life and also worked with Cllr Smith’s father, also a councillor, in raising the issue for many years.

Council chair, John Paul Feeley said: “There may be certain health benefits but, it’s finding the happy medium. Something has to be done at the water treatment plant or to help people put systems in their homes.”

While it was agreed to write to Minister O’Brien to request grants, Cavan County Council’s Director of Water Services, Paddy Connaughton, advised that two separate letters on each the manganese and lime issues be sent to the minister instead of grouping the issues together.