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POLITICIANS on the local and national stage have been calling for action after four breaks in the water supply in Ardfert in a matter of days.
Sinn Féin Deputy Pa Daly TD along with party colleague Tralee MD Cllr Deirdre Ferris and Mayor of Tralee, Fianna Fáil Cllr Mikey Sheehy have all said the problems with the water supply in the village are unacceptable.
Mayor Sheehy said; “Irish Water need to expedite the completion of the mains replacement in Ardfert and I will be ensuring they do.”
Deputy Pa Daly stated that situations such as those in Ardfert are unacceptable and customers deserve better.
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“Thus far this week alone there have been four water main breaks in Ardfert. Every time a repair is completed, a new break occurs which is the result of years of underinvestment in essential infrastructure,” he said.
“While a water tanker has been placed at Ardfert Church Car Park for the duration of the outage, there are customers some distance from the town who are impacted and it is a difficult for them to travel to Ardfert daily to bring home enough clean water.
“I have asked Minister Ryan and Irish Water to confirm the precise date by which Ardfert will be connected to the Central Regional Water Supply Scheme in Lough Guitane later this year. I know that we have been told “by the end of the year”, however these dates slip all too often.
“The way things are at the moment, the Ardfert community is now facing a number of months more with continued disruptions and poor water quality.”
“I have also asked Irish Water if they will expand customer notifications for all breaks in Ardfert as currently they only provide updates to customers when the breaks last more than four hours.
“I would like to thank Kerry County Council workers for the efforts they are making to repair this aging infrastructure and to provide clean drinking water during these interruptions. I know they are out there at all times of the day and night trying to fix these breaks.
“The situation we have seen unfolding in Ardfert over the past number of years is now beyond crisis point and it is unacceptable. Customers deserve better,” he concluded.
