IRISH WATER HAS confirmed that it will retain its conservation order on water in over half of the counties in the country as it continues to “manage scarce resources in these areas”.

It said water supply remains critical in many areas and, as a result, it’s essential to retain the hosepipe ban until 30 September.

The company added that water levels could be at “historic low levels going into the winter”. 

The ban on watering a garden, cleaning a car with a hosepipe and filling or maintaining a domestic pool or paddling pool will remain in place for Dublin, Louth, Meath, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Offaly, Westmeath, Carlow, Wicklow, Wexford, Waterford, Cork, Kerry, Limerick and Tipperary.

The counties where the hosepipe ban will now lift are Clare, Galway, Mayo, Sligo, Leitrim, Roscommon, Donegal, Longford, Cavan and Monaghan.

While Irish Water believes that further conservation efforts in Leinster and Munster should mean it can meet demand in these areas through the autumn, “an unusually dry September/October” could lead to yet further restrictions. 

Irish Water’s general manager Eamon Gallon said: “The 2018 drought conditions have demonstrated the vulnerability of many of our water supplies, notably in the south, east and midlands.

At this stage, the majority of local authorities are working with leakage contractors to deliver substantial savings. Major savings achieved in recent months include in Tralee, Athlone, Cork County, Galway City, Laois and Kilkenny, where schemes under severe pressure due to the drought are now coping satisfactorily due to the water saved.

He added that while the hosepipe ban had now been lifted in some places, he hoped that people continued on with conservation efforts in those areas and said that the extended drought had increased awareness of how important conserving water is among the general public and businesses.