Sewer problems in pipeline for many Mullingar residents

Houses with a sewer or manhole in their back garden could find themselves with a serious problem if any problems arise with the sewerage system – even if the issue doesn’t actually stem from their property.

That’s because the council no longer has responsibility for maintenance of the sewerage systems and Irish Water maintains them only to the property boundaries, Cllr Bill Collentine explained at the Municipal District of Mullingar Kinnegad September meeting, as he warned of how serious the problem is becoming.

“Nobody’s taking responsibility: it’s falling back on the residents who own the houses to solve it anyway they like now,” he said, as he spoke of the predicament in which some homeowners have found themselves.

A further cause for concern, it emerged during the discussion, was the fact that there are no accurate maps in existence showing where the main sewage lines run.

Cllr Collentine had a motion on the agenda calling on the district to provide an update on the issue of the main sewers, drains and services in back lanes and gardens as, he said, situations are now emerging that are causing a lot of problems to residents with these problems.

The written response from the district confirmed there is an issue, and stated that it has arisen as a result of the transfer of water services to Uisce Éireann (UE), which is responsible for all infrastructure to the individual property line but no further: “Beyond this point, it is the houseowner’s responsibility,” the reply from the district stated, before clarifying that the county council would continue to maintain its own housing stock.

Cllr Collentine complained that that was unfair, pointing out that the residents had not put the pipes in the backyards but had bought houses on which that was allowed thanks to the planning permissions granted by Westmeath County Council.

He said in some cases there are 10 or 20 houses on a main sewer coming up a back lane and through gardens.

“Let’s say there’s 10 in a row: who solves the problem?” he said, pointing out that neighbours can fall out and may not all be prepared to chip into the cost of resolving an issue.

He said going that in one recent case, a householder paid €250 to get a problem partially resolved, but was quoted €1,400 more to finish the job.

“It looks like they’ve been abandoned by Westmeath County Council and by Irish Water,” he said.

Cllr Collentine said it is a serious issue: “Where do we go from here? We can’t ignore this. It is a serious problem and it’s not just an isolated problem.”

He said the sewers should have been run in front of houses and said people should be made aware of that when they are buying a house. He admitted he was frustrated at not knowing where to go with the problem.

There was widespread support for Cllr Collentine’s concern, and Cllr Aoife Davitt seconded his motion, saying that the problem will get worse because of the lack of maps showing the location of the sewers and because of the transfer of employees who had traditionally worked with Westmeath County Council and who knew the ins and outs of the town’s sewerage system and where the sewers and pipes were laid.

Warning that it is going to lead to bigger headaches, she wondered if it would be worth trying to have maps created because, even 100 years into the future, the information will be required.

Cllr Mick Dollard wondered if other local authorities were in the same boat, and he said the contract transferring responsibilities to Irish Water has left a lot of people in a bad way.

Cllr Alfie Devine warned that the problem is going to snowball because there is nobody now with responsibility for multi-sewers going through individual gardens.

“It’s going to be a massive problem and we need to get to the bottom of it pretty quick,” he said.

The mayor, Cllr Ken Glynn, said a change in policy is required because Westmeath County Council has no say in relation to what Irish Water should do.

Cllr Collentine wondered if there were any point in writing to the minister with responsibility for Irish Water and setting out the problem. Director of services, Deirdre Reilly, felt that was a wise course of action: “It is a national issue and you need to keep raising it,” she said.