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IRISH WATER IS to submit a planning application today, as part of a €400 million investment to upgrade the Ringsend Wastewater Treatment Plant.
The plant is currently operating beyond its intended design capacity, and Irish Water has said it urgently needs to upgrade the site to cope with future demand.
This latest application seeks permission for works to a number of areas, including upgrades to sludge treatment facilities and to remove the need for a long sea outfall – a 9km tunnel to relocate the discharge of treated wastewater from Ringsend out into Dublin Bay – that was included in earlier plans.
It would also facilitate the use of new technology (Aerobic Granular Sludge, or AGS) that breaks down pollutants in the water faster than would usually happen naturally, which in turn would allow Irish Water to comply with EU directives on waste water.
Irish Water said that its project in Ringsend – with €70 million already invested to date – is one of its most important in supporting the economic projections for growth in the greater Dublin area, and also protecting the environment.
Project manager Jean Hobbs said: “Having identified AGS technology as appropriate for use in the Ringsend Wastewater Treatment Plant, we began detailed testing and trials in April 2015 at the plant.
These trials proved hugely successful, confirming that wastewater treated by AGS technology can be safely and effectively discharged at the current outfall location while protecting the conservation designations in the Liffey Estuary and Dublin Bay.
Hobbs added that today’s application would ensure the plant operates with the “highest possible” environmental standards into the future.
The company is also set to seek planning permission in the near future for the “greater Dublin drainage project, which includes a new wastewater treatment plant in Clonshaugh, which it said will be needed from the mid-2020s to enable the northern and north-western parts of the city to continue to grow into the future.
Irish Water added that the planning application for Ringsend includes an environmental impact assessment report, and a natura impact statement that can be accessed here.
Members of the public with questions related to the project can contact Lo-call 1890 100 056 or email ringsendwwtpupgradeproject@water.ie.
Objections to the CPO may be made in writing to An Bord Pleanála, 64 Marlborough Street, Dublin 1, before 5.30pm on Tuesday 31 July, 2018.
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This ‘Irish water’ entity sure is a nice package ripe for privatisation. Still waiting for that referendum to protect our water from Fine Gael.
@angryDuck: How is it ripe for privatisation. A private company will only go somewhere they’ll make money. Bit hard to make money from a service that people can refuse to pay for and cannon be stopped.
@angryDuck: Water protesters don’t care about pollution but the rest of us do, so any chance you could just let them get on with it?
@Will J. Browne: excuse me, I care very much about pollution. I also care very much about a right wing crony government handing a national resource over to private interests who will asset strip it for profit. Wake up, our water supply cannot go the way of Eircom.
@Roy Dowling: nope. This private company has the ENTIRE COUNTRY’S water supply along with an enforced revenue stream (if allowed).
@angryDuck: Sure you do. You’re just not prepared to pay for it.
@angryDuck: It’s a publicly owned company. Did you not know that?
@Will J. Browne: buddy, you know nothing about me. I’m glad to pay my taxes, this is what we do in civilised countries. However, I am not glad to pay for FGs botched privatisation attempt.
We cannot afford another Telecom Éireann.
@Will J. Browne: and for your info, one ministeral signature could end its public company status. But you know that FG boy.
@angryDuck: You’re not glad to pay for water services and to clean up the pollution that’s caused every time you flush the toilet like they do in every civilized country in the world, Ireland obviously excepted. If you’re anti-privatisation, why are you campaigning against a publicly owned company? What alternative do you want?
Get on with it quick. No delays. No more than 6 months before they start ! But this is ireland and it will be dragged through the courts after objections, Politicians will wash there hands and have enquiries set up a commission to look into it and may be in eight years build something not fit for purpose at double the cost.
It doesn’t look like IW are going away.
@Jane: There’s a problem with sewage treatment in Dublin Bay that needs to be dealt with, and you just want the water company that was set up to deal with it to go away. That’s a bright response. Typical water protester!
@Will J. Browne: typical FG apologist.
The docks should be rezoned residential and the port moved outside of Dublin.
Stop expanding Dublin port, building incinerators and water treatment plants in what should be a thriving waterfront city centre.
I wonder will John Tierney provide a service to avail of some of that dosh . It is a lot of coin…..
There is no good reason why Ringsend should be treating the waste for counties Meath and Fingal. Is the treatment plant is at full capacity, then it is high time another plant was built on the Meath/ Fingal coast to provide capacity for those areas.
The people of Ringsend and Sandymount have suffered greatly at the hands of public bodies. Firstly, the area was used as the city dump. Then the sewage treatment plant and, recently, the incinerator has begun to gush effluent into the air, with unknown consequences. As if that was not enough, the seawater is now the most polluted in Ireland.
We have borne the burden for generations. Now it is time to provide solutions elsewhere.
@John McAlinden: plenty of lies in your comment
Name anything you believe to be inaccurate, a ‘lie’ as you call it.
Well at least 3 things are fairly certain 1) the project will be over budget, 2) it will be late, 3) it will be sub standard.
@Tom Purcell: vast majority of public works come in on the budget given in the tender documents and is definitely of high standard. If it fails the contractor will have to fix it
@Michael Walsh: yes, most do these days such as roads, because they have proper governance, not exactly something which IW is known for. I’m sceptical and more than a little cycnical when it comes to IW in particular – I would love to be wrong, but…
Why not go all the way and recycle / reuse the water? Save on tunnel to the Shannon?
@Niall: recycle waste water as in sewerage?
@Niall: Dublin has a combined system so rainwater and sewerage travels in the same pipe
@Nicholas Lynch: some of it is combined most isn’t
‘Irish Water has said it urgently needs to upgrade the site to cope with future demand.’
A bit more detail on this statement is needed.
Who will actually carry out this work as it sure as hell won’t be worthless money-wasting billing company Irish Water.
Is this article a reprint of an Irish Water press release, posing as ‘news’ I wonder?
There’s a sniff of spin around this.
@mursim: it will be done by a contractor who will win the tender process like all public bodies work
Couple of questions – what was the cost of the current Ringsend Wastewater Treatment Plant and has it lived up to the spec that was attached to it when it was being built, did we get value for money on that project? (I looked, couldn’t find the info)
What does this E400m get us in terms of capacity for the future, will they be looking for another couple hundred million in 5/10 years?
And also does anybody know what that river of blue, foamy, frothy liquid is that runs opposite the Incinerator on Pigeon House road is all about – where does it originate, is it in anyway toxic as it just flows straight into the Liffey and out into the bay and has been doing so for decades.
The Irish have a great record with public Tenders for big projects. Will Mr Lowery be allowed near a phone within a eek of the tenders?
When are we going to see the Siteserve report by Judge Cregan ? The awarding of the water meter fitting contract to FGs O’Bribes company by Hogan needs to be published and the ownership of our water system enshrined in public ownership.
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