Over 1 million litres of water saved daily after leak repair works in Tipperary

Information below is relevant until further updates are provided here or on our Supply and Service Updates section.

A massive 1 million litres of water has been saved in Tipperary every day following the detection of 31 major leaks across the county so far this year. The daily water savings are so significant in the first half of this year alone that they would meet the daily demand of over 7,500 people. This is the equivalent of the combined daily use of the towns of Roscrea and Templemore or it could fill Sean Treacy Memorial Swimming Pool in Tipperary almost twice a day.

Dave Murphy Leakage Reduction Programme Manager with Uisce Éireann, described the finds as “Some of the largest savings of water in the country so far this year.” 

“It’s hard to comprehend that more than one million litres of clean drinking water was disappearing underground every day. Water is a valuable resource and expensive to produce so finding these leaks and successfully repairing them will help secure a more reliable supply for the local communities.”

Uisce Éireann and Tipperary County Council used specialised detection equipment called Acoustic Noise Loggers to identify the exact locations of the water loss on the underground public network. The state-of-the-art technology uses acoustic noise that is more sensitive than the human ear to listen for leaks. 

Speaking about the success of the repairs, Colin Cunningham, Regional Asset Operations Lead with Uisce Éireann, said: “As a result of the collaboration between Tipperary County Council and Uisce Éireann, customers are enjoying a more secure and reliable water supply. For our leak detection and repair teams to locate and repair these leaks is a massive success”. 

“Securing the water supply in Tipperary remains a top priority for Uisce Éireann and Tipperary County Council. Unearthing these leaks is a testament to the expertise and knowledge within Tipperary County Council's Find and Fix crews.” 

Identifying and repairing these leaks will help Uisce Éireann achieve our 2030 goal of a national leakage rate of 25%. The National Leakage Reduction team has made great strides since 2018 when the leakage rate stood at 46%. 

Since 2018, Uisce Éireann has invested more than €500 million to upgrade the underground water network across the country through the delivery of the national Leakage Reduction Programme. We are investing a further €250 million every year up to the end of 2030 - fixing leaks and replacing pipes to provide a more reliable water supply. For more information, please visit the Reducing Leaks page.