Water service in the Gaybrook/Miltownpass area is set for improvements in the near future after it was revealed this week Westmeath County Council has applied to itself to build a 1,000 cu. m resevoir extension in the townland.
This will more than double the local capacity and it will be constructed beside the existing, 800 cu. m Gaybrook water tower, the councillors learned from county manager, Danny McLoughlin, in reply to a question from Cllr Peter Burke.
“The water supply to the Gaybrook and Miltownpass areas is most vulnerable to any increase in flow between Lynn Cross and Gaybrook water tower...due to head losses [drop in water pressure] as well as the limitations of the pumps. The system here is at maximum capacity and there’s only about six or seven hours storage at Gaybrook,” said Mr McLoughlin.
Service in the vicinity has been so severe since Christmas that in recent weeks a number of families in the Griffinstown area of Kinnegad had their water supply changed from the Gaybrook tower to the Killucan tower, and are now no longer subject to the daily small-hour restrictions imposed since the start of the year.
“We should see work commence within a few months and [the project] should be finished by the end of the year,” said Mr McLoughlin.
The reservoir will not be taking any monies from other planned developments in the county as it is to be funded by central Government, through the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government. Consequently, no price was given to the meeting, although April 16 was given as the tender return date.
Mr McLoughlin informed the councillors the reservoir was one of three projects the council had made a Part VIII planning application - an application to itself for public works - for this week. The others were a stretch of the N52 alignment between Rathconnell and Macetown, and another two stretches of cycletrack in the Lynn area.
Part of the work required for the resevoir will be the replacement of 6kms of 200mm mains pipe between Lynn Cross and Gaybrook, and a new 5.6kms of 150mm main from Ballintlevy and Miltownpass.
The reservoir will be built at ground level and would be of similar size to an Olympic swimming pool if built to 50m x 10m x 2m dimensions.
