Ballymore Eustace to Saggart Critical Pipeline Repair
Uisce Éireann has completed critical repair works to safeguard water supply for 1.7 million customers across the Greater Dublin Area.
Critical and complex repairs have been successfully completed to a major trunk watermain that connects Ballymore Eustace Water Treatment Plant and the Saggart Reservoir, to safeguard water supply to 1.7 million customers in the Greater Dublin Area (GDA).
Specialist crews from Uisce Éireann and Local Authorities turned off the water to the trunk main on Monday night with repair and excavation crews working around the clock to repair the pipeline. Critical repairs were completed in the early hours of Wednesday morning and water is now refilling the network.
As the network continues to replenish, customers in Dublin, Kildare and Wicklow may be impacted by low water pressure and discoloured water throughout today, while customers in the north Naas area will see their water returned over the course of the day.
We are appealing to customers in the GDA to conserve water to help maintain everyone’s water supply during the critical repair works.
We will aim to keep customers updated and informed of any potential supply disruptions while we carry out these essential repair works.
We continue to appeal to customers in Dublin, Kildare and Wicklow area to continue to make every effort to conserve water while the network is refilling following the shut-off period. This will help all customers have a full water supply as quickly as possible.
Ballymore Eustace is Ireland’s largest Water Treatment Plant and Saggart Reservoir is a newly upgraded reservoir to store drinking water. The GDA is heavily dependent on this important pipeline which connects customers to clean, safe drinking water.
The pipeline carries 220 million litres of water each day (80 Olympic swimming pools). It supplies about one third of the GDA’s drinking water. The pipeline is over 25km long and is about the same height as an average adult.
Uisce Éireann carried out a survey using innovative technology which identified parts of the pipeline that need repair to ensure it continues to supply the GDA with water.
What are the benefits of these works?
The critical repair works will:
- Ensure the security and resilience of water supply in the GDA.
- Repair a section of the pipeline that is likely to burst if not fixed. A burst on this pipeline would result in unplanned and widespread water outages that could take weeks to repair and affect up to 1.7 million people.
Water conservation is key
Customers can help to avoid water outages for themselves and others by using less water.
Water demand in the GDA has already reached unprecedented levels. These planned repair works will put increased pressure on the supply of drinking water.
Reducing your water use will help safeguard water supply during the repairs, particularly to vulnerable and high-risk users including hospitals and care homes.
There are a number of key things that you can do to help protect water supplies, including:
- Avoid paddling pools.
- With the average shower using 7 litres of water per minute by turning your five minute shower into four minutes, you could save up to 7 litres of water per day!
- Always ensure your dishwasher and washing machines are fully loaded. A modern washing machine uses approximately 65 litres of water per cycle while a dishwasher uses 20 litres. By ensuring they are fully loaded, not only will you conserve water but you will also reduce your energy bills.
- Don’t flush it all away: A third of all water used in the home is flushed down the toilet. Some larger cisterns can continue to work effectively with a smaller flush. Place a displacement device into the cistern (out of the way of moving parts) to save water.
- Check your home, business premises and unoccupied premises for leaks and get them fixed.
- Don’t leave taps running and fix any dripping taps inside or outside your property.
Find lots more useful water saving tips here.
Customers wishing to report major issues such as flooding, large leaks or an urgent water quality issue can contact us on 1800 278 278 (lines open 24/7).
For all other issues, please submit the below contact form and we will be in touch with you.
