Ireland is not immune to problems with water quality highlighted by World Water Week.
"There is ongoing concern [about water quality] - the huge amount of development in the country is putting pressure on our water," said Green Party TD for Dún Laoghaire Ciarán Cuffe.
"The big picture is things are improving but there are still some problems and in the end it's up to the Government and members of the public like myself to do something about it."
Wexford County Council said yesterday that about 200 people have been affected by water shortages in the Courtown area this summer. "The problem is that development continues to precede infrastructure," said Daragh Cullinan, senior engineer in the council's water services department. "It's particularly bad on bank holiday weekends when the sun shines."
A report released by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last week concluded that an "unacceptable number" of water bodies are polluted. It found that 30 per cent of rivers, 10 per cent of lakes and 22 per cent of estuaries and coastal waters will require remedial measures to comply with the requirements of the Water Framework Directive.
Karin Dubsky of Coastwatch Ireland said that too many people are unaware of the quality of their water supply.
"We really need to monitor our water supplies more closely. Local authorities could do more monitoring but people can and should carry out simple nitrate tests on their own supplies to check for pollution."