Madam, - While the Minister for the Environment and other interested parties are debating the merits of new developments in unsewered areas, there is a major problem which is apparently being overlooked, or perhaps ignored. It is the widespread pollution of surface, ground and drinking water by septic tank and inadequate domestic sewage treatment equipment.
There are roughly half-a-million of these systems installed in Ireland, the majority of which simply do not work, with disastrous environmental and dangerous public health consequences, such as the recently reported fact that over 50 per cent of rural water schemes do not meet the EU drinking water directive. Apparently 25 per cent of these water schemes contain human or animal faeces.
Since they were installed in accordance with official requirements, the Minister and his department are surely responsible for the problem. The questions are:
1. Will the Minister take action to alleviate the present situation?
2. Who is going to bear the cost of replacing these systems? - Yours, etc.,
MIKE MADDEN, Ballydavid, Athenry, Co Galway.