CLARE COUNTY Council faces a potential €500,000 fine for allowing water untreated for the parasite, cryptosporidium, into the Ennis public water system over a five-month period last year.
At Ennis District Court yesterday, Judge Joseph Mangan directed that the case being taken by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must be dealt with by a higher court. He was told that the council would be pleading guilty in the case.
The maximum fine allowed in the District Court is €5,000.
However, following Judge Mangan’s ruling, the case will be now heard in the Circuit Court where the maximum fine allowed for the offence is €500,000. In the case, the council is pleading guilty to breaching an EPA directive that it cease the practice of allowing water bypass the council’s temporary plant for treating cryptosporidium from May 1st to October 21st last year.
Explaining the background, EPA solicitor Alan Doyle told Judge Mangan that there had been an outbreak of cryptosporidium in the town’s water supply in 2005.
Mr Doyle said that at that time, no water going into the public water supply was filtered for cryptosporidium; instead it was treated by chlorination. The council put in place a temporary plant to filter the water for the parasite, but it was not adequate, and between January and March 2008 cryptosporidium was allowed into the public water supply on a number of occasions.
Mr Doyle explained that the council’s temporary plant could not get all the water filtered and that 25 per cent of the water supply was going through unfiltered.
As a result, on March 31st, 2008, the EPA issued a directive to Clare County Council that all water going into the Ennis public water supply by filtered for cryptosporidium by May 1st, 2008.
Mr Doyle said the council complied with the directive by May 16th. However, there was very heavy rainfall in June of that year and the filters for cryptosporidium at the plant became clogged and only 60 per cent of the water supply for Ennis was getting through.
As a result, parts of Ennis were receiving no water and that there were concerns over the supply of water for the local fire service and essential services.
Mr Doyle said that the Health Service Executive felt at the time it was preferable to have a contaminated supply and people could flush their toilets, rather than an inadequate supply.
The council decided to bypass the filters for cryptosporidium on June 30th in order to restore an adequate water supply to Ennis and it was bypassed on various dates between then and October.
Mr Doyle said there have been no incidents of cryptosporidium in the water supply since March of this year.
After hearing the evidence, Judge Mangan declined jurisdiction and adjourned the case to November 26th for the preparation of a book of evidence.
