The city’s water supply, already low and under pressure due to the unprecedented cold weather, may have to rationed if the city’s water levels remain at their current “low and critical level”.
The severe cold spell of weather has led to many areas in the city experiencing reduced water pressure with reservoirs at low levels because of increased demand.
However water consumption has been “exceptionally high”, reaching a 16 per cent increase, according to City Hall because of the cold weather. The increase is due to many people running taps at night in order to prevent them from freezing or bursting.
Normally reduced demand for water at night allows the reservoirs to be replenished and the levels to rise, but due to the unusually high night time demand in recent days, the levels are not replenishing and are staying at a “very low and critical level”.
According to Ciarán Hayes, the council’s director of services for water, “if this continues the council may have no option but to restrict water in order to preserve supplies.”
Mr Hayes has already informed the 15 city councillors and the various residents associations throughout the city about this. He is not keen to ration or temporarily cut off supplies as some people are experiencing low water pressure and some loss of supply. However he said supplies must be conserved.
“I have been able to keep the water supply going,” he told the Galway Advertiser, “but if the high demand continues rationing will have to be introduced.”
As a result Mr Hayes is appealing to the public to conserve water in the interest of all consumers and to turn off taps and not let them run for longer than is necessary. He also said alternative measures can be taken to prevent pipes freezing such as leaving on the light in the attic to provide low level heating.
Householders, landlords, and owners of commercial premises are also asked to check their properties, particularly vacant unheated premises, for frozen and leaking pipes and to repair the pipes or to shut off the supply temporarily.
