The Aran island of Inis Oírr is facing a water shortage with night-time rationing introduced this week.
As The Times Ireland edition reports, Irish Water and Galway County Council have appealed to the islanders to conserve water for essential use.
Night-time restrictions came into place last night (May 3) from 11 pm to 7 am and will remain indefinitely. Tourism has not yet resumed on the island, although several school tours have taken place within county boundaries.
Inis Oírr, which is the southernmost of the three Aran islands with a population of just under 300, has experienced periodic water shortages over the past decade.
It has had to receive shipments of water to relieve the situation during the summer months.
However, the extent of this shortage at an early stage of the year and with few visitors due to Covid-19 has taken the community by surprise.
Although many elderly and vulnerable islanders are now vaccinated, there is also concern among residents about the availability of water for hand-washing during the pandemic.
It is understood a site was acquired for new storage tanks and it was then deemed too expensive to construct them.
Irish Water says it is committed to a “ long term solution for the provision of drinking water on Inis Oirr”, which “will be developed” as part of a national water resources plan.
However, it is expected this will take some time, as submissions on a national draft framework plan for water resources are currently being reviewed.
Sewage Treatment on Inis Mór
On neighbouring Inis Mór, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has initiated legal proceedings over sewage treatment.
The EPA has confirmed that the waste water works serving the public toilets and a number of properties in Kilronan village on Inis Mór are “not authorised”.
The works are “subject to a legal action in the district court with an initial date set for June 3rd, 2021”, the EPA said, stating it could not comment further.
However, the EPA confirmed it has also initiated an investigation of a separate waste water works at the Kilronan Cottages complex, which took place on April 22nd.
The Kilronan Cottages system is operated and maintained by Irish Water and the water services section of Galway County Council.
Irish Water said that Galway County Council are responsible for the collection, treatment and disposal of waste from the public toilets system on Inis Mór.
It said that Galway County Council has agreed to undertake a number of “actions” to address issues at the separate Kilronan Cottages waste water system.
Read The Times here