Manganese problems in the water in North Kilkenny are being treated as a priority according to director of services at Kilkenny Philip O’ Neill.
He was speaking following questions from north Kilkenny councillors this week at a meeting of Kilkenny County Council regarding the ‘black water’ that the people of Mooneenroe and Clogh were being forced to endure as a result of the high levels of Manganese in the soil.
Mr O’ Neill assured the members that the council was treating north Kilkenny water projects as a priority. He acknowledged the high levels of the naturally occurring substance in the soil and pledged to deal with the issue as soon as was possible.
“We have sought funding of €1.25million from the department which is the maximum feeding we can secure for Clogh/Mooneenroe. There is only a certain amount of funding available and we simply can’t do everything. This is a priority scheme and Castlecomer Waster Water Treatment Plant has applied to move the scheme to major scheme status so that more grant funding would be available. If the status is left as it is we can only secure 30 per cent of the funding but if it’s moved to major status we can secure 60 per cent,” he outlined.
He added that there were a significant number of water projects going ahead and said that water services are number one priority.
Cllr John Brennan said that the issue should have a sense of urgency.
“As it is, there are a number of very important projects in the pipeline dependant on investment in water services in north Kilkenny. Currently, there is not one new house allowed to be built in the area — how are young people supposed to stay living there and what about jobs and preserving rural communities?” he asked.
