With water charges to non-domestic customers going up in the county following the adoption of Mayo County Council’s budget for 2011 this week, it was also revealed that over 40 per cent of water produced in county is lost in leaks.
Fianna Fáil councillor Damien Ryan hit out at the proposed increases at this week’s budget meeting. “My view is that for every gallon of water produced about half a gallon is lost before it gets to houses and business and we have to pay the cost,” he said.
County manager Peter Hynes, responding to the Cllr Ryan, told the meeting: “There would be a loss of between 42 to 43 per cent on the line through leaks, but that puts us in the top three in the country for the least lost.”
Director of services for water for Mayo County Council, Paddy Mahon, said the council currently has “a very aggressive water conservation programme” in operation. “It is now focused on the south of the county after a very successful one based in the north of the county was started in 2006,” he added. “We are dealing with a lot of work, but it will all needed to be followed up with a lot of replacement work. But we have to have the capital investment to be able to do these works.”
