The drinking water supplies of 4,600 people across 22 private group scheme lines were in breach of E Coli limits last year, according to a new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report.

E Coli is a key indicator of the proper disinfection of water and a further 71 small private supplies, such as hotels, schools and nursing homes sourcing drinking water from wells, exceeded limits in 2023.

The EPA has stated that as only 1,665 small private supplies are registered out of a still unknown total number of supplies, many more people’s health could be at risk from the bacteria.

Local authorities did not monitor 14% of the small private supplies which have been registered.

The report came after €38.5m made available in funding for private water supplies between 2019 and 2023 went unspent.

Further breaches

Some 21 private group water schemes supplying a total of 22,000 people failed another key drinking water quality standard – the one set for trihalomethane – up from 16 schemes having breached this limit the previous year.

Trihalomethane is formed when organic matter present in a raw water source, such as vegetation, reacts with chlorine used to disinfect supplies.

EPA director Dr Tom Ryan has said that a greater effort is needed to tackle the issue of sub-standard drinking water from small suppliers and the local authorities which monitor them.

“All drinking water produced in Ireland, whether it comes from a public or private supply, should be of high quality,” Ryan commented.

“Urgent action is needed by suppliers and local authorities to address these failings, in order to protect the public health of consumers.

“Local authorities must take proactive steps to identify and register small private supplies in their areas and the legislation needs to be amended to make it an offence for a supplier not to be registered, in the interests of public health.”