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There are no plans to expand the septic tanks grant schemes to allow more rural homeowners to avail of new grant rates, Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien has said.
New grant rates came into effect on 1 January 2024, with the maximum grant amount available rising to €12,000, up from €5,000.
Updated terms and conditions in the scheme saw the removal of a requirement to have had the septic tank registered in 2013.
Households can avail of the grants only if their current septic tank has failed an inspection under the national inspection plan and an advisory notice has been issued or if the septic tank is located in either a prioritised area for action or a high status objective catchment area, as identified in the River Basin Management Plan 2018-2021.
No further changes
However, the Minister has ruled out expanding the grant scheme to more locations, telling Independent TD Carol Nolan that he has no plans to make further changes.
“The purpose of these grants is to incentivise householders to carry out works to their defective septic tanks.
“The grants are focused on the areas of greatest environmental priority to protect human health and the environment and are not general in application,” he said.
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