Boil Water Notice remains in place for customers on the Whitegate Regional Public Water Supply

A prolonged period of heavy rainfall in recent weeks and again in the past 24 hours has resulted in high levels of turbidity at the plant that compromised water treatment.

The boil water notice remains in place for approximately 6,500 people at this time.

Irish Water and Cork County Council say they are working to lift the notice as quickly as possible, by working on minor upgrades and assessments at the plant and monitoring and testing water quality across the networks supplied from Whitegate.

In 2016, Irish Water added a new filtration system to the water treatment plant at Kilva. This filtration system enhanced water treatment, but the plant remains vulnerable to high levels of turbidity following heavy rainfall events in the catchment. The frequency of these rainfall events has increased in recent years.

The boil water notice was imposed on the Whitegate Supply on February 01 as a precautionary measure following turbidity issues at the Water Treatment Plant, which may have compromised the disinfection process that makes the water safe to drink. The areas impacted include Whitegate, Aghada, Churchtown, Ballycotton, Cloyne, Saleen and Ballinacurra. A detailed map, which clarifies the local areas and properties on the Boil Water Notice is available on the Irish Water website, www.water.ie and here.

On February 07, a mechanical issue occurred at the plant. Irish Water and Cork County Council have since been assessing this mechanical issue and completing repair work. All repair work was completed last week. A technical assessment is also underway to ensure the plant continues to operate correctly at this time.

Neil Smyth Operations Lead with Irish Water, said “We want to assure the 6,500 people on the Whitegate supply that we are working to lift the notice as quickly as possible. We have been working over the last few weeks to deliver minor upgrades at the plant and monitor and test water quality across the network. A combination of adverse weather conditions in recent weeks and the current heavy rainfall event are giving our teams an opportunity to monitor the plants performance when turbidity levels are at their highest.”