2025-12-16

Honestly, I cannot believe I am here in 2025 talking about this issue because 14 years ago, when I was standing for local elections, I raised this issue as one of the major issues within the Mulhuddart area. We talked on top of a hill beside Mulhuddart cemetery and that piece of land now has 800 homes on it. There are now in the region of 2,500 to 3,000 houses within the curtilage of this issue and stench coming from a pipe which comes from a pumping station in Kilbride and Hollystown in County Meath. It peaks at the area I just talked about, where there are vents that are emanating this horrendous smell. For the past 20 years, we have constantly tried to get this issue resolved between Fingal County Council that originally had its water department and which then transferred over to Uisce Éireann. In fairness to Uisce Éireann, it has come back to us on numerous occasions and told us it has put new plant machinery in, new scenting machines, cleaned out the sewage pipes and sealed the shores along the road where this problem is. However, unfortunately, it keeps coming back. I have comments here from local residents. Even today, one resident said: It has been there for years. They have built around it. It is rotten. It is like a rotten egg, a chemical smell or sulphur. They said it was cleared and flowing. It is back again. As long as I am living here, the smell has always been that way but recently it is worse. It is comment after comment and it is hard to believe when you are there and drive through that area, you have to roll the windows up in your car. It is that bad at times; it is not all of the time but it is consistent enough. The reason I am raising it tonight is because in recent weeks it has got really bad. It has been raised at Fingal County Council and with Irish Water but it does not seem to be resolved at this stage. I appeal to the Minister to maybe sit down with us and Irish Water to try to figure out a long-term plan for this. In my opinion, the long-term plan is for that pipe to be moved. As I said, we have a situation whereby Fingal County Council has built close to 1,000 houses. There are currently 800 or 900 houses there in a place called Church Fields. It is social, affordable and cost-rental housing. It is a lovely estate but we said at the time if this sewage smell was not resolved, then we will have huge problems. We were putting people literally next to it and I find that really frustrating. At this stage, I am appealing Government for the sake of the residents. There are people who have lived in that estate and those areas for 40 years and in the past 20 years, they have been constantly told this is going to be resolved and unfortunately, it has not. As I said, in recent weeks it has got really bad.

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I am taking this question on behalf of the Minister for housing, Deputy O'Brien. The Deputy will appreciate, and already knows, the supply of public water and provision of wastewater services in general are matters for Uisce Éireann in the first instance. Uisce Éireann has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local level. Neither I nor Minister Browne have an operational function in the matter to which he refers. However, we have asked Uisce Éireann for an update on his behalf. First, Uisce Éireann is committed to addressing odour issues and supporting communities impacted by public wastewater infrastructure. As the national water services provider, Uisce Éireann manages approximately 26,000 km of public sewers across Ireland. This extensive network is continually monitored and maintained to ensure it operates effectively and minimises any impact on local communities. In response to complaints relating to odour in the Mulhuddart area specifically, and I think the Deputy referred to this, Uisce Éireann recently undertook significant improvement works upstream to enhance flows from Kilbride, County Meath. These works involved diverting flows away from Church Road and directing them eastwards. This diversion has already delivered a noticeable reduction in odour impacts across the wider area, improving conditions for residents and businesses. Does the Deputy know if this has had any impact? Some of what he has said is it seems to come and go. I am not sure what he is saying but certainly, if that is the case, that needs to be brought to the attention of Uisce Éireann because he is right, it is not good enough. However, further measures are planned for early in the new year to build on this progress, and I hope there has been some progress. These include sealing the old pipeline that is now disused following the diversion. Once sealed, the old manhole chambers will also be filled with concrete, eliminating potential sources of odour and further improving the local environment. While I personally know nothing about the specific situation, I believe that should be prioritised. It is important to note Uisce Éireann is responsible for the public wastewater network only. Odours arising from private side dwellings or internal plumbing fall outside its remit. However, it remains committed to investigating any reported issues within the public network and implementing solutions where required. Uisce Éireann teams continually review the network to identify opportunities for improvement and ensure that communities experience the highest possible standard of service. Uisce Éireann has established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public representatives. I do not need to tell the Deputy what the email is and there is also a dedicated telephone number. Finally, the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, CRU, also provides a free complaint resolution service for customers who have submitted a complaint to Uisce Éireann and are unhappy with the outcome. Again, I presume I am telling the Deputy what he already knows but it does provide solutions.

It is an interesting reply. In some ways, it probably makes sense in that the pipe is now disused and has been moved eastward. I assume it has moved eastward towards Damastown because there were recently major pipe works along that road. We are probably currently dealing with the last bits of it because if it is not being used and is empty, there maybe some residue leftover. In the next couple of months, we will continue to monitor it and I look forward to it being sealed up and concreted over. That should hopefully get rid of that problem along Church Road and finally get a resolution to this. I welcome the response. The best thing we can do now is possibly just monitor this to make sure the works Uisce Éireann says are going to be carried out will be done as quickly as possible. We may finally see the end of this problem for the residents. Being honest, it is something that has really frustrated people over the past 20-odd years. As I said, I went back and checked my files and it was 14 years ago when I first raised it. Hopefully, this is the last time I do. I appreciate the response and we will keep it under review and see how we get on.

I thank Deputy Donnelly. Again, without knowing any of the specifics, I agree with the Deputy and hopefully we are dealing with the final steps and that, as he said, it would be sealed up and concreted over. I agree nobody should have to live with that. I will again refer to what is contained in the response I have here. I think I can say with sincerity that Uisce Éireann would like to assure customers that it is committed to addressing odour issues and supporting communities impacted by issues relating to public wastewater infrastructure. The networks are continually monitored and maintained to ensure that they operate effectively and that any impact on local communities is minimised. From what the Deputy said, it appears that progress is being made. What needs to be done now is to get to the end point-----

As quickly as possible.

-----in order that the Deputy will not have to raise this matter again and that nobody will have to respond to it again. The updated national development plan has secured record levels of investment of €12.2 billion for the water sector, of which €11.7 billion will be invested by Uisce Éireann to support the delivery of key strategic projects in our cities and regions in order to deliver the additional water services capacity required for the new housing targets, while prioritising public health and safeguarding the environment. That reflects the issue the Deputy raised.