First phase of Athlone's water treatment plant upgrade almost complete

The first phase of a major upgrade of Athlone's water treatment plant, which got underway last February, is now nearing completion.

Veolia Water Ireland was contracted to carry out the €4m initial phase of the project on behalf of Irish Water and Westmeath County Council.

Athlone has been hit by frequent interruptions to water supply in recent years, particularly between 2017 and 2019, and the treatment plant upgrade is designed to help provide a more reliable water supply locally.

In response to a query from the Westmeath Independent last week, an Irish Water spokesperson said the first phase of the work at the plant in Marine View was almost finished.

"This phase of the project will ensure a more secure water supply to homes and businesses in Athlone in the short term," spokesperson Nuala Hansard stated.

A more extensive second phase of the upgrade, earmarked for 2022 to 2024, is currently "progressing through the design stage" and "an advanced package of works will commence in early 2022," Ms Hansard said.

She added that, upon completion, the project would "ensure the long term demands are met in terms of delivery of safe, clean drinking water to residents and businesses in Athlone and the surrounding area, improve water quality and water treatment standards, improve the control and reliability of the water supply, support economic and social development in the area and ensure compliance with current drinking water quality regulations."

The upgrade of the treatment plant in Athlone, increasing its output to 18 million litres per day, was one of the objectives outlined in Irish Water's long-term plan for water services in the Midlands and East.

A three-month public consultation on the plan got underway on Tuesday, December 14.

The plan stated that, in South Roscommon, there was a need for new groundwater extraction points at Lisbrock and Killeglan, as well as an upgrade of the water treatment plants in these areas.

It said the ability to move water between the areas of the network supplied by the Killeglan and Lisbrock plants was currently restricted "due to the condition of the AC trunk mains between Bellanamulla and Taghmaconnell," and that "this in turn impacts on the ability to distribute water effectively between supplies and respond to major incidents."

A need for increased water abstraction from the River Suck to supply the Ballinasloe area was also identified in the plan.

By far the largest, and most controversial, aspect of the Irish Water plan for the future of its services in the Midlands and East is a proposed pipeline from the Shannon which would pass through Offaly and would supply the Dublin area.

The controversial 170km pipeline, which carries an estimated cost in the region of €1.3 billion, would see water extraction take place to the south of Lough Derg, in the Parteen Basin in Tipperary, with water treatment nearby in Birdhill.

The water would then be piped through parts of Offaly, including an area around the Slieve Bloom mountains, before continuing onward to a reservoir at Peamount in Dublin.

A report included as part of the public consultation indicated that there would also be connections from the pipeline to supply Tullamore and several other areas in Offaly.

A connection point from the new Shannon pipeline to serve the Mullingar area is also being proposed.

The pipeline project is designed to extract 210 million litres of water per day from the lower Shannon.

The utility said its plan would help provide "a more secure, reliable and sustainable water supply for 2.5 million customers in this region over the next 25 years."

The statutory public consultation on Irish Water’s plan, entitled the 'Draft Regional Water Resources Plan for the Eastern and Midlands Region', began last week and continues until March 14, 2022.

Public submissions on it can be made by post or email, and more details are available on the Irish Water website.

Following the public consultation, the submissions received are due to be summarised, along with responses, in a consultation report which is to be published at: water.ie/rwrp/easternmidlands/