The European Council has adopted a regulation restricting the use of phosphates and other phosphorus compounds in consumer laundry and automatic dishwasher detergents in order to reduce the level of phosphorus poured into the waters. The limit value for consumer laundry detergents is set at 0.5 grams of phosphorus per washing process in a standard … Read more
Improvements in water quality in the EU could be at risk from new forms of chemical pollution. The European Commission is proposing to add 15 chemicals to the list of 33 pollutants that are monitored and controlled in EU surface waters. This is another step towards improving the quality of our river, lake and coastal … Read more
The positive downward trend in E.coli in drinking water in recent years continued in 2010, according to a new report released by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). For the first time, large public drinking water supplies in Ireland show similar compliance levels for E.coli to similar supplies in England and Wales, and the Netherlands. These … Read more
The quality of Ireland’s bathing waters remains high, with 97% of designated bathing areas meeting the EU mandatory standards, and classed as being of ‘sufficient’ water quality status, according to the EPA’s recent report ‘The Quality of Bathing Water in Ireland – An Overview for the Year 2010’. In addition, 90% of bathing waters meet … Read more
Building on its successful relationship with Northern Ireland Water, WYG has won a contract to help improve water quality for residents of east Belfast. The Leeds-based consultancy will be designing, managing and co-ordinating construction design management on a new £750,000 project to reduce out-of-sewer spills to water courses. This project forms part of a larger … Read more
The world’s urban and industrial water use is projected to double by 2050, yet one fifth of the world’s population, or some 1.2 billion people, already lives in areas of water scarcity. One of the best ways to stretch our planet’s dwindling supply of available water is through increased reuse and recycling, yet progress in … Read more
The latest report on water quality in Ireland by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found evidence of improvements in water quality in Ireland. However, continued actions across a range of sectors are needed if Ireland is to achieve its European water quality obligations. The report, ‘Water Quality in Ireland 2007 – 2009’, is a … Read more
The total Government funding available for this year’s Rural Water Programme is €85 million. Capital block grant allocations of over €71 million are available to County Councils in order to bring rural water schemes up to standard and to complete any remaining schemes in the Rural Water Action Plan this year. The €71.5 million allocation … Read more
There has been a 50% reduction in the detection of E.coli in Irish public drinking water in the last two years, according to a new report by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This is the EPA’s third report on drinking water quality since new regulations were introduced in 2007 providing for a greater level of … Read more
The European Commission is proposing to ban the use of phosphates and phosphorous compounds in laundry detergents. Phosphates from detergents are one of the main sources of ‘red tides’ and ‘green tides’ of algae bloom and seriously affect water quality, both in rivers and at sea. Getting rid of phosphates is difficult – they have … Read more