Land acquired for new state-of-the-art water treatment plant in Whitegate

Uisce Éireann, working in partnership with Cork County Council, today announced that a site has been acquired for a new state-of-the-art water treatment facility that will serve the East Cork community of Whitegate.  

Uisce Éireann recently announced a multi-million-euro investment that will put an end to the frequent boil water notices that the community has had to endure, due to various complex issues with the water supply in the area.

Water Operations Lead for Uisce Éireann, Pat Britton said:

"We are delighted to be progressing with the long-term plans for Whitegate. To have this land agreement completed in such a short timeframe is an indication of how much of a priority this project is for Uisce Éireann. Along with our colleagues in Cork County Council, we wish to thank everyone in Whitegate for their patience and co-operation. This has been a very frustrating time for the community as we have had to put Boil Water Notices in place to protect the health of the community."

Last week Uisce Éireann's Operations and Infrastructure Delivery teams invited Councillors and TDs in East Cork to a briefing on the status of the ongoing operations and maintenance works at the current plant, and an overview of future plans for the Whitegate Public Water Supply Scheme. 

Regional Infrastructure Delivery Lead for Uisce Éireann, Ian O'Neill said:

"We understand the need to keep everyone in the area updated while we progress the project. We recently met with some of the elected representatives in East Cork where we outlined the plans for the project. We hope to have a detailed design completed by the end of 2022. We are targeting early 2023 for the submission of a planning application to Cork County Council, if required, and all going to plan, we hope to start construction in early 2024 with a completion time expected in late 2025. A project of this scale would traditionally have a turnaround time of seven plus years from concept design through to completion, we aim to have it completed in a much shorter timeframe." 

"As we have said throughout this process, there is a possibility that we may have to re-issue more Boil Water Notices if the raw water deteriorates or we get a bad spell of adverse weather." 

"We look forward to working with our colleagues in Cork County Council and the local community on delivering this vital project in the years to come."

The proposed works will include decommissioning of the old water treatment and building a new state-of-the-art water treatment plant, a new coagulation, flocculation and clarification system, a new filtration system and a new disinfection system. 

Further updates will be made available as the project progresses.

Uisce Éireann is responsible for the delivery of all public water and wastewater services in Ireland. We are committed to continuously upgrading and developing critical infrastructure to support the growth needed in housing and across our economy, while protecting the environment and safeguarding water supplies.