Limerick County Council has reissued its appeal to consumers to restrict their use of water to essential purposes only for the duration of the current dry spell.
Latest forecasts suggest a return to very warm weather over the coming days, which the Council says will inevitably lead to an increase in demand for water.
Public Water Supplies recorded large increases in demand for water throughout the County during last week’s hot weather, putting a strain on distribution systems which resulted in some localised disruptions to supplies..
While there is no immediate risk to supplies consumers are being requested to observe a number of water conservation measures to minimise the risk of disruptions to water supplies during the warm dry spell
According to Tom Tarpey, Senior Engineer, Water Services: “Our water treatment plants have a limited daily production capacity. Therefore, it may be necessary to curtail water supplies in any area from time to time in the interest of water conservation and to ensure some level of supply to consumers. Members of the public can play their part in minimising the risk of disruption by making reductions to their water usage, no matter how small.”
He continued: “In order to ensure a continuous minimum supply to all areas, the watering of gardens and washing of cars in particular should be avoided. Farmers are urged to check drinking troughs to ensure that ball-cocks have not been damaged due to high consumption levels by cattle resulting in overflowing water troughs.”
The Local Authority says the following measures should also be observed:
- Don’t leave taps running
- Don’t use a hose when washing down driveways, etc – use a bucket and brush
- Only run your washing machine or dishwasher when it has a full load
- Avoid washing cars as much as possible – use a bucket rather than a hose
- Reduce the use of power showers – a power shower can use 125 litres of water in 5 minutes
- Fill the kettle with enough water for your needs
- Avoid watering lawns
- Use a basin to rinse/clean your fruit and vegetables
Further information about Water Conservation is available on www.taptips.ie or on the Limerick County Council website, www.lcc.ie.
Latest forecasts suggest a return to very warm weather over the coming days, which the Council says will inevitably lead to an increase in demand for water.
Public Water Supplies recorded large increases in demand for water throughout the County during last week’s hot weather, putting a strain on distribution systems which resulted in some localised disruptions to supplies..
While there is no immediate risk to supplies consumers are being requested to observe a number of water conservation measures to minimise the risk of disruptions to water supplies during the warm dry spell
According to Tom Tarpey, Senior Engineer, Water Services: “Our water treatment plants have a limited daily production capacity. Therefore, it may be necessary to curtail water supplies in any area from time to time in the interest of water conservation and to ensure some level of supply to consumers. Members of the public can play their part in minimising the risk of disruption by making reductions to their water usage, no matter how small.”
He continued: “In order to ensure a continuous minimum supply to all areas, the watering of gardens and washing of cars in particular should be avoided. Farmers are urged to check drinking troughs to ensure that ball-cocks have not been damaged due to high consumption levels by cattle resulting in overflowing water troughs.”
The Local Authority says the following measures should also be observed:
- Don’t leave taps running
- Don’t use a hose when washing down driveways, etc – use a bucket and brush
- Only run your washing machine or dishwasher when it has a full load
- Avoid washing cars as much as possible – use a bucket rather than a hose
- Reduce the use of power showers – a power shower can use 125 litres of water in 5 minutes
- Fill the kettle with enough water for your needs
- Avoid watering lawns
- Use a basin to rinse/clean your fruit and vegetables
Further information about Water Conservation is available on www.taptips.ie or on the Limerick County Council website, www.lcc.ie.
