No decision yet on excess water charges, says dept

A decision on the date for the introduction of charges for excessive water use by households has not yet been made, the Department of Housing has said.

Last September, Uisce Éireann published its Water Charges plan, under which every dwelling in Ireland will have an annual water allowance of 213,000 litres, with additional allowances depending on the household size.

The average amount of water used by households in Ireland is 125,000 litres per year, according to figures from the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities.

Households which use more than their allocated allowance will be liable to an excess use charge, for both water and wastewater services, which will be capped at €250 each per year.

Uisce Éireann will charge €1.85 for every 1,000 litres of water usage over the threshold.

Currently, there are no charges for water supplies or wastewater services.

In a statement to RTÉ News, the Department of Housing said that the rationale behind the Household Water Conservation Charge is to encourage water conservation and “to ensure Ireland’s compliance with its obligations under the EU Water Framework Directive”.

The department said the conservation charge is not intended as “a revenue-raising” measure.

It added: “Before implementing the Household Conservation Charge, regulations relating to the provision of extra free allocation for people with health needs and for households to seek additional allowances based on household size need to be prepared.

“These are currently being worked on and are expected to be finalised soon.”

Sinn Féin’s Spokesperson on Housing Eoin Ó Broin said the department’s claim that the excess usage charge is a water conservation measures is “utterly false”.

He added: “The Government’s real intention will be to introduce the principle of charging for domestic water services as the first step in water charges being applied to all households.”